S13.E11: National Finals 2

[Lantern7]

Penultimate episode! Will it be like 2019, with around fifty ninjas making it to Stage Three?

[Lantern7]

Interesting night so far. Meagan went out on the first obstacle. Weatherman converted the Express Pass, but he had to battle food poisoning.

ETA: Jake Murray pulled off one helluva run. I get how he can annoy, but he’s got the talent.

ETA2: Flex finally cleaned Stage One.

Edited September 7, 2021 by Lantern7

[ams1001]

Wow, some surprising flameouts!

I didn't think Burkhardt was gonna catch that ring!

Joe M has food poisoning? Jeez. (When he was preparing to do the warped wall I thought he was about to throw up.) His littlest one is adorable; loved him sitting there looking around like he was wondering what all the excitement was about.

Jake almost fell and still managed to catch the High Road. (Now I'm just waiting for someone to fall off it because they're showing off while hanging from one hand.)

Still not convinced mom's tattoos are real.

Go Flex!

Sorry to see The Suit get wet... 

[Frogger ad: I swear all the Wayans men have the same voice.]

I get people not liking the Safety Pass but Vance Walker kind of makes me glad it exists. (I laughed a little when Matt (or was it Akbar?) said he was "special" since I just watched Special on Netflix which is about a guy with CP.) If a teen wins this thing, I hope it's him.

Edited September 7, 2021 by ams1001

[mlp]

I was so happy that Vance Walker made it through on his safety pass.  I just can't help rooting for that kid even if he is a teenager.  

I was very happy that Flex finally succeeded.  After failing four times and never giving up, she deserved her win.  Chris looked like he was crying at the end.  I'm sure he was almost as invested in her run as she was.

I was also glad that Joe and Jake finished the course.  Joe looked miserable but he toughed it out.  Jake can be a goofball but but he backs it up by being very good.  I get a kick out of him.

 

 

[Fukui San]

Guys, when a contestant is suffering from food poisoning, I do not need to hear the phrase "Let it go, Let it flow!"

[Lovecat]

10 hours ago, Fukui San said:

Guys, when a contestant is suffering from food poisoning, I do not need to hear the phrase "Let it go, Let it flow!"

We were taking bets as to which end was going to explode first.

[DEL901]

27 finished stage 1?   Is that some kind of a record.

I was hoping the long haired kid would finish stage 2.   I can’t imagine there were many finishers since next week is the finale.

[tracyhmcd]

When they show the results (e.g., of Stage 1), anyone else wishing they would include the ages *not* of the teenagers but of the adults? I guess as an adult, I see it as more of an accomplishment the older you get.

[absnow54]

I swear, Jake Murray used the Force or something to catch that ring, it looked completely out of his grasp, and then somehow, it wasn't.

Not many "regulars" in stage 2 this season, even though 27 competitors made it through. Seeing so many vets on the sidelines, I couldn't remember many competing this season. I guess it was about time for the torch to pass down to the younger competitors. Still, yay Flex!

[Good Queen Jane]

Memo to Show: there are many things I enjoy watching on this show, but a young man sobbing an apology to his deceased grandmother for falling in a made for TV game is not one of them. 

[ams1001]

1 hour ago, Good Queen Jane said:

Memo to Show: there are many things I enjoy watching on this show, but a young man sobbing an apology to his deceased grandmother for falling in a made for TV game is not one of them. 

Oh, my god, yes. That was entirely unnecessary. (And maybe I'm cynical or this show is too predictable, but since they gave him that whole sappy intro package I had a feeling he was going to go out quickly,)

[Omeletsmom]

13 hours ago, Fukui San said:

Guys, when a contestant is suffering from food poisoning, I do not need to hear the phrase "Let it go, Let it flow!"

There were so many things they said during that run that could have been taken another way given the circumstances.  I felt a teeny bit guilty for laughing.

[SophiaD]

3 hours ago, Good Queen Jane said:

Memo to Show: there are many things I enjoy watching on this show, but a young man sobbing an apology to his deceased grandmother for falling in a made for TV game is not one of them. 

This, absolutely.  That's right up there with watching that other poor guy throw up last week.  Have some decency, show.

[SophiaD]

So, so happy for Flex!  She is currently my favorite ninja and definitely of those still competing.  Glad Joe made it through, although I cannot imagine running that course while not having food poisoning!  

The hang time for some of those guys who caught the Safety Pass was incredible.  I don't know how they do that!  

I did feel badly for the first teen with the long hair, mainly because he was SO CLOSE to completing Stage 2.  Happy for Vance Walker.  The rest of it was just kind of meh, and I thought the editing was weird, in terms of having the second part of one stage on the first part of the episode and then jumping over to Session 2.  It was an odd emotional swing to go for being happy for those who made it to watching, essentially a splatfest.  

I'm still not planning on shelling out the $$$ to see the kids run on Peacock, even if it is a feeder program for the show.  

[realdancemom]

5 hours ago, DEL901 said:

I was hoping the long haired kid would finish stage 2.   I can’t imagine there were many finishers since next week is the finale.

I was hoping that he would make it too.  I like some of the teens like him.  Vance is another one so I'm glad that he made it.  I like the one that is trained by Najee mainly since I'm sad that Najee can't compete this year but it's nice to see him and cheer for his student.  Plus, is he the one that takes the subway and travels really far to train?  That takes a lot of dedication and I admire that.

Hooray for Flex!!  Jake is so fast and wow, can't believe how he and another guy jumped so high and stretched so far to reach that ring.

[Fukui San]

The 2nd stage is once again populated with 3rd stage-esque arm fatigue obstacles. This version of the show is addicted to having ninjas hanging off an obstacle swinging back and forth to build up momentum. I'd prefer a version which better melds footwork with grip strength.  

[VartanFan]

I’m not saying Joe M was faking, necessarily, but he knows what gets airtime. Not all of those grimaces were real. 

[Quilt Fairy]

3 hours ago, Fukui San said:

The 2nd stage is once again populated with 3rd stage-esque arm fatigue obstacles. This version of the show is addicted to having ninjas hanging off an obstacle swinging back and forth to build up momentum. I'd prefer a version which better melds footwork with grip strength.  

Yeah, it didn't seem to be well-balanced, even in comparison to previous years.  I don't miss the end obstacle with the underwater window things, but 2 extremely similar hanging/swinging obstacles one after the other just seems stupid. 

However, as stupid and sappy as this show can get, it is the only show I watch that can make me scream "NO!!" when someone falls unexpectedly (like the long-haired guy)  and makes me clap for the best runs (this time it was for Vance Walker and Jesse Labreck).   So there's that. 

[VartanFan]

8 hours ago, Quilt Fairy said:

However, as stupid and sappy as this show can get, it is the only show I watch that can make me scream "NO!!" when someone falls unexpectedly (like the long-haired guy)  and makes me clap for the best runs (this time it was for Vance Walker and Jesse Labreck).   So there's that. 

My husband says he has more fun watching me watch the show.  

[realdancemom]

2 hours ago, VartanFan said:

My husband says he has more fun watching me watch the show.  

My husband said that he can hear me screaming for the contestants in the other room.  He does the same with football and basketball.  At least, I don't get angry like when his team is losing.

[Vermicious Knid]

I'm mildly curious if Juniors is on the free tier, but not enough to bother looking.

Wasn't there a season where like, only 3 people got past Stage 1?

[RedbirdNelly]

I just loved Flex's big smile once she got to that cargo net. I was so happy for her. 

I was amazed by Jake's catch of the ring. He cracks me up.

I do find it weird the way they split up Stage 2. I guess is just doesn't work to have 2 shows on stage 1, a stage 2 show and a stage 3/4 show. 

[realdancemom]

2 hours ago, RedbirdNelly said:

I just loved Flex's big smile once she got to that cargo net. I was so happy for her. 

I was amazed by Jake's catch of the ring. He cracks me up.

I do find it weird the way they split up Stage 2. I guess is just doesn't work to have 2 shows on stage 1, a stage 2 show and a stage 3/4 show. 

Also loved Flex's big smile at the cargo net.  It was relief knowing that she didn't fall and had enough time to finish.