S32.E03: We're Makin' Big Moves

[Whimsy]

Quote

Teams are in Manaus, Brazil where they have big decisions to make when they encounter the first U-turn of the Race.

 

[Whimsy]

Here's the topic for tonight's episode!

[Pepper the Cat]

This airs 1 hour earlier in Canada. Are we allowed to post or do we have to wait until it has aired in the US?

[Browncoat]

Read the clue.  Read. the. clue.  READ. THE. CLUE.  You'd think they all would have learned from last week's episode to read the damn clue, but nope.  Were Will and James the only ones to figure it out?  

I am over Michelle and Victoria.  They can go any time.  But really, Frank and Jerry deserved to be eliminated for following them in the first place, though I am sorry to see them go.

I am loving the tour of South America! 

[mojoween]

So much going on, yet I was just absolutely consumed with how terrible the blonde girls pants were.

[weightyghost]

I have disliked the Harvard team ever since the first episode where they claimed they'd be overlooked because people would see them as nerds, who then proceed to talk about how smart they are and how they went to Harvard at every turn. 

There are always those who can dish it out (help others to the determent of others) but can't take it (be on the receiving end)

[Haleth]

READ THE DAMN CLUE, PEOPLE!

Jeeez, you’d think they would have learned from last week with the truck challenge. Read.the.clue.

Other things that annoyed me?  The first place guys’ bitchiness. Michelle’s shrewishness. The several woman who tried to hug the indigenous people.  The father and son strolling through the episode.  The setting was amazing though (heh) and the tasks were interesting.  How cool to cruise the river overnight?

[Pepper the Cat]

Yep, am over Michelle and Victoria. Victoria is ok but Michelle is a witch.

Sorry to see Frank and Jerry go but I never really expected them to,go far.

Am amazed about the number of people that just dropped their shopping. As soon as I saw the shopping list I knew that a cooking challenge would be coming up.

 

[InDueTime]

Ugh. I hope this isn't the season of the unread clue. 

They made a lot of mistakes, but I'll miss Jerry and Frank.

I'm starting to dislike Alana and Leo.

Edited October 29, 2020 by InDueTime

[absolutelyido]

Leo and particularly Alana can go F themselves.

Last week they set back the Olympic women and Jerry & Frank by telling the blonde women about connecting the horns on their truck, which lead to the blonde women again setting back Jerry & Frank this week by u-turning them. But they are outraged that James & Will would u-turn them, and Alana can barely muster the emotional strength to get through the second detour. Maybe have a little self-awareness of what YOU have done to set back other teams before getting all high-and-mighty about James & Will u-turning you.

Also, I hate these alliances. I was so hoping all of the lead teams had taken the boats without their grocery bags because they were so smug about being in the alliance of lead teams. 

 

 

Edited October 29, 2020 by absolutelyido

[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.

[Stardancer Supreme]

Will & James aren't feeling it for Leo & Alana, and I have to agree with their assessment.

It was funny seeing how quickly Alana crumbled under the slightest bit of adversity.  Free Leo!

And yet here we are in Leg 3 with no one completely reading the clue.  Plus we have Michelle and Victoria completely missing the clue sitting in the basket next to the U-Turn.  Killer Fatigue usually doesn't hit this early. Heh.

So long to Jerry and Frank. 

[sinycalone]

16 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

Read the clue.  Read. the. clue.  READ. THE. CLUE.  You'd think they all would have learned from last week's episode to read the damn clue, but nope.  Were Will and James the only ones to figure it out?  

I am over Michelle and Victoria.  They can go any time.  But really, Frank and Jerry deserved to be eliminated for following them in the first place, though I am sorry to see them go.

I am loving the tour of South America! 

Will and James did not actually read the clue properly....I think that honor belongs to the Volleyball Bros.

[mojoween]

The Amazing Editors helpfully putting up a clock when Michelle and Victoria finally found the clue made me laugh right out loud.

[Lantern7]

I’m thinking maybe I watched a different episode, because I didn’t like Will & James getting snippy over Leo & Alana. Full disclosure: I identify with the latter, so they have to REALLY upset me. It’s just there the sharing of information last leg led to the elimination of Olympians. Where’s the problem? If you’re in the final leg, wouldn’t you want to be with teams that aren’t peak athletes? Or wouldn’t you want Rob & Amber to be eliminated, so that you wouldn’t have to worry about their “stans” tackling you near the finish line?

I’m probably overthinking it, and I think that last analogy was over the top. I just don’t feel Leo/Alana as the bad (or annoying) guys. Alana says they’re not going to bring it up with Will & James. Translation: we’ll be having at least five minutes of sniping next week.

More lack of clue-reading is distressing. On the plus side, the Detour looked great. And one advantage of doing those near folks that seldom see outsiders is that they probably won’t laugh if you screw up.

Does anyone miss the airport drama? And the sponsor was wedged in there, which . . . bleh. I’ll still take it, though.

[Stardancer Supreme]

8 minutes ago, Richness said:

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 noticed most of the teams dropped their items in the sand after getting checked.  That probably played into the grabbing of items since some of them were not on the checking table.

I just noticed the Camera man at the market! There was other sightings? They sat on these episode for 2 years; the editing shouldn't be so sloppy. 

The sisters bumbled around for 37 minutes and still narrowly missed being eliminated.  Victoria called Michelle a "Boss bitch." I think she meant Bossy bitch. I still find them amusing.

[raeb23]

2 minutes ago, Stardancer Supreme said:

Will & James aren't feeling it for Leo & Alana, and I have to agree with their assessment.

Especially Alana. There's nothing wrong with being proud of your academic accomplishments, but specifying that Leo went to Havard after he spoke about his degree seemed kind of smug. Also, you can't say that you've been kind to all of the teams when you favoured Hayley & her sister over two other teams last week. She seemed really hung up on being u-turned. Girl, you're in a race, help Leo knock out the task, then bitch about it after you check in to the pit stop.

[Grizzly]

Still not fond of the beards but am warming up to the brothers. They seem very level headed and competent. Like that they know some foreign languages. Still rooting for the football players. Did the sister half of the engineer siblings help at all with the leaf hut task? 

[xcrayon2215x]

I will miss Jerry and Frank a lot, Leo and Alana are getting on my nerves now. Teams seem to be struggling a lot at remembering to read the clue, loved seeing the natives in Brazil and all the great scenery.

 

[toodywoody]

I'm sad. I didn't want Frank and his son to go.

To me it was a good move that the Whiners u turned Alana and whatshisface. It almost had her giving up because she was so defeated and if there is one thing about The Amazing Race, it is to never give up. 

And once again people didn't read their clues.

I still love Chee and Hung and the football players. The football players were right not to give out info but then did but gave themselves a little head start on the sisters.

And the sisters, my gosh the one is nasty and then walking all over the place. Once again read the clue but look around.

Then the other sisters seem like they mostly get along.

Oh yeah and the nerds needed to be knocked down a peg or two. Because they just adore themselves and think they think so highly of themselves. And here they thought they were so great and they had to redo it again. Yes her meltdown was classic fatigue and frustration and she should be glad for him because I think she is the one that is so damn conceited and he just lets her talk. Maybe she won't be so high and mighty now.

I did love the couple's face when Alana was talking and carrying on in the hut.

Oh yeah, I couldn't believe how they all dropped their stuff. I knew it was going to be either a cooking challenge or a cook it and eat it challenge.

Edited October 29, 2020 by toodywoody

[weightyghost]

20 minutes ago, Lantern7 said:

It’s just there the sharing of information last leg led to the elimination of Olympians. Where’s the problem? If you’re in the final leg, wouldn’t you want to be with teams that aren’t peak athletes? 

They had a point though - they weren't u-turning them because they thought sharing information was mean. It made them realize they prioritized other teams over them and therefore when push comes to shove, they're going to get shoved. It was the Olympians last week, Frank and Jerry this week all because of the two of them being friendly with the blondes. It could easily be Will and James next week. Of course you're going to aim for the team who has shown they are willing to help others along that aren't you.

[North of Eden]

Knife? Knife? It's an F'ing Machete!]

Okay, got that out of my system. Wow tonight was like two sides to one coin. One on side you have CLASSIC Amazing Race with all the confusion about bringing the items/and or bag and having to turn back. Loved it...felt like the earlier seasons. On the flip side of the coin we have the race totally being infected by alliances and petty grudges....it's a race...it's...it's a race...people its a race!! Not find a friend hours.

With that said though I will say my heart warmed as the Cajun Asians desperatley tried to help the father and son by shouting from their boat about the bags. I love me some Victoria and I know the sister is not well liked here but that showed at the end of the day they are good people.

If anyone has seen the movie THE GREEN INFERNO...I am totally hoping that the insufferable Will and James fall victim to that tribe next week. They are so annoying that I can barely listen to them when they open their mouths and I noticed they do a little 'victory dance' like children whenever something goes their way.

Sad, three very likeable teams in a row go home and yet the nondescript blondes, Team Gross Beards and their alliance obsession and the NFLers who grow increasingly more unlikable each week remain.

[chaifan]

 

45 minutes ago, absolutelyido said:

Last week they set back the Olympic women and Jerry & Frank by telling the blonde women about connecting the horns on their truck, which lead to the blonde women again setting back Jerry & Frank this week by u-turning them. But they are outraged that James & Will would u-turn them, and Alana can barely muster the emotional strength to get through the second detour. Maybe have a little self-awareness of what YOU have done to set back other teams before getting all high-and-mighty about James & Will u-turning you.

 

No, Leo & Alana did not "set back" either the Olympians or Jerry & Frank.  Helping one team is not setting back others.  If they purposely gave wrong information, or misdirected them, or whatever, that would be setting back another team.  But helping one team forward is not setting other teams back.  Helping the sisters last week is what saved their bacon this week, so in hindsight that was a really good move.  And we all know so much of what the racers say is prompted by production, so I never hold it against a team when they seem to repeat things, whether it's that they went to Harvard, or are professional football players, or Olympians, etc.  And yes, Alana was exhausted, just like a lot of teams were.  We saw what - at least 3, maybe 4 teams have meltdowns this week.  A bit early for KF to be setting in, but they were in the Amazon, so heat had to be a factor.  Anyways, I don't think Leo & Alan deserve the rough criticisms they're getting here.

I am surprised at what a sloppy mess this whole leg was, for just about everyone. Did anyone run the leg clean, without careless errors?  Running in the wrong direction, not picking up clues, the market fiasco...  So many teams say they're TAR fans, so they should know whenever there's a shopping trip those items will be used in the next task.  Read. The. Clue.  Dammit.  I do give production credit, though.  I don't know if previous post-shopping tasks have ever been so separated from the market, making this error 10x more serious than it has been in the past. 

Jerry & Frank - not surprised to see them go.  I wish production had given us a bit more time with them, just to make me care a little.  But I don't think I'll miss them because I barely noticed they were there in the first place. 

The bearded brothers are growing on me.  (pun somewhat intended)  They're playing a good game.  I'm liking the brother/sister team, too.  And Hung & Chee are still at the top of my list.  OK, fine.  I pretty much like everyone.  Even Victoria & Michelle - they're a bit annoying, but they're such... sisters.  Glad to know I'm not the only one out there that isn't all hugs and kisses with my sister.  Will and James bug me more than anyone else, but I'm not rooting for anyone to go right now. 

 

 

[mertensia]

Alana,reminds me of Justin and Diana from season 27. Does she have a green hat?

Sad to see Jerry and Frank go but it wasn't unexpected.

 

[mtlchick]

This episode should have been sponsored by Reading Rainbow. Because it is fundamental. 

[Netfoot]

Whiney Little Shit continues to irritate my soul. Alliances. Bah!

How stupid are these people? They get sent to buy a long shopping list of items, and then they just leave them? I didn't have a clue to read and I still knew they were to take the stuff. And particularly food? You're gonna have to cook that stuff!  And it wasn't one or two, it was most teams!

You are in the Bush and going even further into the Bush, and you are told to bring a cutlass. So what sort of idiot do you have to be to get a wooden one? And some idiot saying "Don't run with a knife!" It's a cutlass, dude, not an UXB!

Why didn't the teams have to use the blowpipe themselves? That little extra challenge is what TAR used to include and now doesn't.

Shaddup, WLS!

Manioc. Stuff can be poisonous if not prepared properly.

Jerry and Frank are making too many mistakes. Easily avoidable mistakes...

"We're making big moves!" Yeah, I'm sure the members of the jury will be impressed. Oh, wait.....

I kind of liked Jerry and Frank so I was sorry to see them go, but they were not good racers at all, and they earned their dismissal. Bye, guys!

I think the takeaway this week is: READ THE CLUE!

[tinkerbell]

maybe it's my frazzled brain, but I think the filming and editing have gone down since the early seasons.  I found the marketplace segment hard to follow, I couldn't tell which teams were gathering the items, and which ones were still looking for the location.   Many times during the episode, there was someone talking,  and the video showed teams racing, but it was difficult to tell which racer it was who we heard talking.  

[Shadow Wave]

Agreed; the market segment was a confused jumble. There's a balance between a snappy edit and making everything a blur.

I was also mildly annoyed that they're still doing the "First team to leave: 3:22 AM" bits at the beginning when they're all just piling into the same spoon-fed plane at the airport anyway. Although, at least they were honest enough to have Chee saying as much.

[Guest]

3 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

I’m thinking maybe I watched a different episode, because I didn’t like Will & James getting snippy over Leo & Alana. Full disclosure: I identify with the latter, so they have to REALLY upset me. It’s just there the sharing of information last leg led to the elimination of Olympians. Where’s the problem? If you’re in the final leg, wouldn’t you want to be with teams that aren’t peak athletes? Or wouldn’t you want Rob & Amber to be eliminated, so that you wouldn’t have to worry about their “stans” tackling you near the finish line?

I didn’t see at as Will and James getting snippy or that they really even cared that Alana and Leo shared information. It was more that it made W&J realize L&A were strategizing to knock out a strong team and that they would do them same to them given the chance. Knocking out a physically strong team is a good plan but so is knocking out a race savvy team. L&A’s talking heads and the fact they were saved by the blonde team proved that W&J were right to see them as a threat. 

Edited October 29, 2020 by Guest

[Quilt Fairy]

I don't think it was Read The Clue as much as Understand The Clue.  It said something like "Take all your stuff with you" and at least one team (I think the NFLers) looked at their backpacks and said, "OK, we've got our stuff" and ran off without their market purchases.  

[Bluesky]

23 minutes ago, Shadow Wave said:

Agreed; the market segment was a confused jumble. There's a balance between a snappy edit and making everything a blur.

I thought they did that to show the ridiculous chaos of the teams sharing info and running in all directions as if they were one big team.

I hate the alliances.  How stupid will the one with Masters Degree in Poetry feel when the team she helped at every leg of the race wins the million dollars.  

[BK1978]

4 hours ago, Pepper the Cat said:

 

Sorry to see Frank and Jerry go but I never really expected them to,go far.

 

 

I was all in on a Frank and Jerry win.  I guess I was way off on that one. 

[Hera]

I think the five team alliance is hilarious, mostly because it cannot and will not last. It includes a team that has finished first-first-second (I don't know how they do it—it seems like they're just very efficient at getting through tasks) and two extremely fit teams who can probably beat any of the other teams in a footrace and in any challenges where physical endurance and/or brute strength are advantages. I could see wanting to keep Will/James and Eswar/Aparna around, but no one should want to help the other three.

I also wonder if working together at the market ended up causing the confusion and lost belongings when their items were being checked, since everyone finished at about the same time, and people put all their stuff on the table together. I noticed that as soon as the judge had finished with one team, he immediately started pulling things out of the next team's bag. But teams had to read the clue he gave them to know that they needed to bring the stuff from the market with them, so they would have been putting the items they collected back into their bag while new items were being put on the table to be checked. It's no wonder items got mixed up and left behind.

I can kind of understand why James/Will were gunning for Leo/Alana. As @weightyghost pointed out, Leo and Alana have shown a willingness to help teams who aren't Will and James. Plus, James and Will clearly fancy themselves the strategic masterminds of this season of the race, and might see more similarities between their game and that of Leo and Alana and therefore feel more immediately threatened by them. However, I think they should have seen why their U-Turn was a bad move: they were out in front and they had no idea where most of the teams behind them were or how far behind they were. It's pretty much always better to let the teams at the back use U-Turns and Yields to knock each other out. Also, why didn't they coordinate with one of the other teams in their alliance to waste the other half of the U-Turn? That would have maximized the chances that Leo and Alana would go home. In reality, though, I think Jerry and Frank were probably so far back that they would have been out, even without the U-Turn.

Finally, I've never had a problem telling teammates apart before (aside from when they've cast actual identical twins),  but I really can't tell the difference between Kaylynn and Haley. When they're on screen together, I can see they're not identical twins, but I wouldn't be able to describe the differences in their features. I know one of them (Kaylynn?) is slightly taller than the other, but that doesn't help when they're giving confessionals in a cab, or when it's just one of them in the frame.

[Vermicious Knid]

Had to crack up at the blurred breasts. Because Amazonian tribes traditionally wear no clothes except for penile sheaths. The outfits were entirely for the benefit of the American audience. If you noticed, they were all sparkling new and clean. But apparently they still wouldn't wear more than the minimum.

Alana: "We have Masters degrees!" An hour later: "This is [sob], so hard!"

Seriously, if they are TAR fans they should know gathering ingredients always leads to some kind of cooking challenge. That's like not learning to drive stick. And Victoria and Michelle running around for 34 minutes looking for the clue that was. right. there. I want to post a giant gif of Homer Simpson going "D'oh!"

 

 

[GaT]

How can they still not be reading the clue????? 

[HeShallBMySquishy]

3 hours ago, tinkerbell said:

maybe it's my frazzled brain, but I think the filming and editing have gone down since the early seasons.  I found the marketplace segment hard to follow, I couldn't tell which teams were gathering the items, and which ones were still looking for the location.   Many times during the episode, there was someone talking,  and the video showed teams racing, but it was difficult to tell which racer it was who we heard talking.  

2 hours ago, Shadow Wave said:

Agreed; the market segment was a confused jumble. There's a balance between a snappy edit and making everything a blur.

I was also mildly annoyed that they're still doing the "First team to leave: 3:22 AM" bits at the beginning when they're all just piling into the same spoon-fed plane at the airport anyway. Although, at least they were honest enough to have Chee saying as much.

Yes. I thought it was just me and my frazzled brain, since I had to play it back several times to determine who was where and when, and I realized I had to do that with the previous episodes as well. It doesn't create excitement, since it's hard to be excited when you barely have a chance to see who you're watching when the average shot length seems to be 1-2 seconds. It actually reminded me of the ugly incoherent editing that almost sunk the action movie genre in the 2000s (think the Bourne movies, Taken, etc.).

I don't understand how READ THE CLUE is not something that goes through the minds of every Racer before, during and after every task. It's the basic rule! Like on Survivor, it's learn to make fire. It makes me think that teams who continually make this mistake have ever watched more than an episode or two.

6 hours ago, weightyghost said:

I have disliked the Harvard team ever since the first episode where they claimed they'd be overlooked because people would see them as nerds, who then proceed to talk about how smart they are and how they went to Harvard at every turn. 

There are always those who can dish it out (help others to the determent of others) but can't take it (be on the receiving end)

I was neither here-nor-there on those two before, but they did come off as pretty damn smug this episode. More Alana than Leo really, or at least based on what we've seen. It was fun to watch them knocked down a peg though.

[SDVegas]

7 hours ago, Richness said:

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.

Yep, I counted that 3 times in this episode, they were very much part of the footage. 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

23 hours ago, Shadow Wave said:

I was also mildly annoyed that they're still doing the "First team to leave: 3:22 AM" bits at the beginning when they're all just piling into the same spoon-fed plane at the airport anyway. Although, at least they were honest enough to have Chee saying as much.

I like having the time stamps at the beginning of each episode so that I can see just how far apart all the teams finished the previous leg. This time there was a three hour time difference between when the first team finished and the last team finished, which means that the last three or four teams were lucky that everyone was on the same flight to Brazil.

On 10/28/2020 at 6:13 PM, Richness said:

Also could have done without all the tears, though I realize how demoralizing it is when things aren't going your way.

Even though it's annoying to watch people cry about something as trivial as not finishing a task, I try not to judge people for crying because that's a physical reaction that I personally can't control. For me, it's like sneezing. If my body decides it's happening, there's nothing I can do about it (if I try, I just end up making weird noises and then I'm just crying AND making weird noises).

I couldn't believe how many people made mistakes during this leg. I've never been on a show like TAR and even I knew that they were going to be making something with all those ingredients as soon as I saw the shopping list. The boyfriends get credit for taking their shopping bag  with them and for checking what was in the bag against the list while they were on the boat, but they went back TWICE because they were missing items from their bag!

I know people get frazzled in the moment, but I couldn't believe that the sisters missed the clue bucket when it was RIGHT THERE. I totally cracked up when one of them said, "Where's the clue?" and ran off without it and the camera then swung over and showed the bucket with the red and yellow clue envelopes.

This leg and the previous one really showed who is a strong racer and who is not. Both legs started with spoonfed flights and we got to see who broke away from the pack and who floundered at the back. The father/son team seemed nice enough but they just didn't have enough hustle. It's great to appreciate the time you are spending together (and it's always nice to see a team that isn't fighting with each other or other teams), but you can't forget that it's a raaaaaaaaaace!

Edited October 30, 2020 by ElectricBoogaloo
typo

[Pepper Mostly]

10 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

I’m thinking maybe I watched a different episode, because I didn’t like Will & James getting snippy over Leo & Alana. Full disclosure: I identify with the latter, so they have to REALLY upset me. It’s just there the sharing of information last leg led to the elimination of Olympians. Where’s the problem? If you’re in the final leg, wouldn’t you want to be with teams that aren’t peak athletes? Or wouldn’t you want Rob & Amber to be eliminated, so that you wouldn’t have to worry about their “stans” tackling you near the finish line?

I’m probably overthinking it, and I think that last analogy was over the top. I just don’t feel Leo/Alana as the bad (or annoying) guys. Alana says they’re not going to bring it up with Will & James. Translation: we’ll be having at least five minutes of sniping next week.

I'm with you. Will and James decided that they dislike Leo and Alana, complete with whispers and pointing and eyerolls when they show up for a task. They haven't actively done anything to Will and James. Well, except actually have to audacity to want to win themselves, and run their own race, without considering the interests of Will and James. Will and James? Projecting, big time. They're so mad they didn't properly read their clue, and doubly mad that Leo and Alana helped someone else. I'm all for RAAACE; Will and James are making in personal. I've come to dislike them quite a bit. They're nasty and spiteful and I look forward to their downfall. 

I can't get exercised by Leo and Alana's academic accomplishments. Its obviously their "hook" and will be brought up every single time they're on screen. The Olympians and the football players do it too. 

9 hours ago, chaifan said:

 

No, Leo & Alana did not "set back" either the Olympians or Jerry & Frank.  Helping one team is not setting back others.  If they purposely gave wrong information, or misdirected them, or whatever, that would be setting back another team.  But helping one team forward is not setting other teams back.  Helping the sisters last week is what saved their bacon this week, so in hindsight that was a really good move.  And we all know so much of what the racers say is prompted by production, so I never hold it against a team when they seem to repeat things, whether it's that they went to Harvard, or are professional football players, or Olympians, etc.  And yes, Alana was exhausted, just like a lot of teams were.  We saw what - at least 3, maybe 4 teams have meltdowns this week.  A bit early for KF to be setting in, but they were in the Amazon, so heat had to be a factor.  Anyways, I don't think Leo & Alan deserve the rough criticisms they're getting here.

I agree. It seems now that they've been marginalized and will be ostracized the the "cool kids", and that's a look I do not like on this show. I don't blame Alana for crying. She thought she and Leo were simply racing and trying to do their best, and that they had a good relationship with the other teams. Now they find out that they're targeted by a bunch of other teams for no reason. Seriously, it was no reason, other than Will and James trying to establish themselves as top dogs and in charge of the narrative. They should have gone on Survivor, it lends itself better to their kind of bitter cakes shenanigans.

The ones who are smug with a capital S and need knocking down a peg are Will and James. I find them insufferable.  

[snarts]

The biggest issue was the set up for the check of market items.  Teams were scrambling to get the lone person's attention and the way the table was set-up, coupled with the unwieldy items, meant that they had to unpack everything.  Yet, once they were handed their clue, they politely stepped out of the way for another team.  I think that's why so many ended up leaving their stuff on the table and why it was such a cluster when they went back to find it. Still, takes 30 seconds to read (& comprehend) your clue before running off to the next task.

The heat had to be unbearable. I noticed that DeAngelo was wearing lycra/spandex leggings.  I just hope that they had some built in moisture wicking because ewww.  They are my favorite team.

I don't mind when teams help one another out, but I don't enjoy the the premeditated "let's gang up on one team"  Looking at you, Will & James. 

[chaifan]

7 hours ago, BK1978 said:

I was all in on a Frank and Jerry win.  I guess I was way off on that one. 

Last week I speculated that the lack of air time they were being given meant one of two things - that they were either done this week, or they'd be in to the end.  And now we know.

[sinycalone]

8 hours ago, Bluesky said:

I thought they did that to show the ridiculous chaos of the teams sharing info and running in all directions as if they were one big team.

I hate the alliances.  How stupid will the one with Masters Degree in Poetry feel when the team she helped at every leg of the race wins the million dollars.  

That was my reaction.....the market place editing was deliberately chaotic to demonstrate how counter-productive the sharing was in most cases.

[sugarbaker design]

11 hours ago, Haleth said:

The several woman who tried to hug the indigenous people.

The highlight of this train wreck of an episode is the indigenous thumbs-up hug blocker that Alana got!

[shura]

11 hours ago, North of Eden said:

Knife? Knife? It's an F'ing Machete!]

Rabbi Tuckman: Here's your knife.

King Richard: Sword.

Rabbi Tuckman: Whatever.

7 hours ago, Vermicious Knid said:

Had to crack up at the blurred breasts. Because Amazonian tribes traditionally wear no clothes except for penile sheaths. The outfits were entirely for the benefit of the American audience. If you noticed, they were all sparkling new and clean. But apparently they still wouldn't wear more than the minimum.

Alana: "We have Masters degrees!" An hour later: "This is [sob], so hard!"

Seriously, if they are TAR fans they should know gathering ingredients always leads to some kind of cooking challenge. That's like not learning to drive stick. And Victoria and Michelle running around for 34 minutes looking for the clue that was. right. there. I want to post a giant gif of Homer Simpson going "D'oh!"

Right? Those unnaturally bright green underwear things they were wearing for a dance still had creases on them! They looked like they were made of some stiff synthetic fiber and must have been super uncomfortable to wear.

Not sure about ingredients always leading to a cooking challenge. Sometimes they simply have to deliver their purchase someplace. Besides, if you picked the roof/wall covering side of the Detour, you would avoid the cooking.  Did they even use anything from their shopping list in building those roof?

Liked "Arigatou... oh, I mean obrigada."  It's awesome to see when people actually hear themselves and make corrections on the fly.

[joanne3482]

8 hours ago, Hera said:

Finally, I've never had a problem telling teammates apart before (aside from when they've cast actual identical twins),  but I really can't tell the difference between Kaylynn and Haley.

Sadly, for me, if there is a team where both members are the same race and gender, it will take me forever to figure it out.

Since the stuff was only used for one side of the detour I couldn't help but wonder what would have happened if one of them hadn't figured it out and they just did the hut detour by default.  Would they have gotten a penalty at the mat? For father/son I don't think it would have mattered. I don't think they could have done the hut task before the ladies who u-turned them finished their task. But I did wonder about it. 

I also liked father/son team and was a little sad to see them go, but they weren't good racers. Now rooting for NFL, Hung & Chee, and possibly that's it. 

[ChiefWiggum9-1-2]

The so-called Five Team Alliance reminds me of some of the worst seasons of Survivor, where it’s basically a duck shoot and non-alliance players are picked off one by one based solely on numbers. No excitement, very boring. And this season looks like it will fall along those lines. 

[Pepper Mostly]

1 hour ago, sugarbaker design said:

The highlight of this train wreck of an episode is the indigenous thumbs-up hug blocker that Alana got!

 Hung also moved in for a hug and was rebuffed.

[AZChristian]

I am somewhat embarrassed to admit it, but among the few TV shows I watch is "90-Day Fiance."  One of the women who (unfortunately for her) met her "fiance" online lived in or near Manaus.  There is a scene where her idiotic (to put it kindly) American was in a cab to get to where those transport boats would take him from the city where he flew to from the US to Manaus.  The guy (who was from Kentucky) spoke not ONE word of Portuguese.  He told the cabbie to take him to the boat dock.  But  between his accent and his attempt to say it with a Portuguese accent, it came out as "bow dock."  The cabbie - obviously - had no idea what he was saying, so the guy just repeated it louder and slower - as some Americans do when they're speaking to a person who does not speak English.

So last night, as they were looking for those boats to take them to the next stop, I kept yelling, "bow dock, B-O-W D-O-C-K."

Well, it was funny here anyway.

[vousviou]

1 hour ago, sinycalone said:

That was my reaction.....the market place editing was deliberately chaotic to demonstrate how counter-productive the sharing was in most cases.

The alliance got them all rushing together, which led to them getting into a pack mentality and turning off their brains. I think that was the biggest reason for not reading the clues and forgetting to keep track of the things they bought.

Pack leaders who are genuinely interested in the well being of all of the members of a pack will take care of all of the responsibilities of thinking for the group, even if that hurts them individually. Obviously Will and James didn't do that, but then there is ultimately no incentive for them to do that.

I think they are taking a huge risk by making it so blatant and other teams are being smarter by letting them be the obvious instigators. The football players were the most clever by holding back crucial info about bringing the bag but then revealing it halfway down the river -- they got an advantage AND got goodwill.

[hendersonrocks]

I would like *both* Leo/Alana and Will/James to be off my screen as soon as possible, as I am strongly over all four of them after this episode.