S14.E10: National Finals 1

[Lantern7]

It comes down to this.

Quote

The finals return to Las Vegas where the ninjas face up to eight super-sized obstacles in Stage 1; the ninjas must complete the course, including new obstacles Three Ring Circus and Tetherball, to advance to Stage 2 of the National finals.

Edited August 16, 2022 by Lantern7

[Lantern7]

First shock of the night: Sean Bryan goes out on the second obstacle. I don’t think he’ll feel better if it turns out Three Ring Circus is a ninja killer.

Edited August 16, 2022 by Lantern7

[ams1001]

Does the diabetic teen need a whole backstory every time? We get it, diabetes makes it harder.

No sympathy for the guy who fell because he had to throw flips in there.

Wow, poor Barclay 😦 That sucks.

And Austin. Ouch.

Yay for Flip! I'd love to see him win it.

[enoughcats]

13 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

No sympathy for the guy who fell because he had to throw flips in there.

Or did he know he wouldn't be fast enough so decided to have fun. (And the editors cheered to have something to break up the splash downs at the climbing spider?)

Barclay's exit was on par with that of the first guy (the one who was a sports cameraman in real life) to climb Mt. Midoriama only to lose to a faster guy, anyway wasn't it the next year that he slipped into the water on obstacle one? 

If one of us were a statistician, I'd guess that the boys and a couple of men who completed the run would have similar weights and very similar body frames.  Two wouldn't.  But I'd guess the middle of the bell curve would be crowded.  

[Taeolas]

3 Ring Circus is challenging but not too bad of a Ninja killer it seems. 

Tether ball was a good addition, it's a bit of a time killer. It wasn't a run killer but it is certainly a run damager.  Taking out Captain NBC is a nice feather in the Tetherball cap. 

First shocker of the night was certainly Sean going out so early. 

Second shocker was seeing that the Weatherman COVID'ed (his wife tested positive for COVID) out and couldn't run. 

Third shocker was Barckley's misstep on the first one. Yikes. :( 

The women were doing decent, but it seems they need to train more on the jumping spider. That's a classic ninja killer so there's no reason they shouldn't be practicing that regularly. 

[Lantern7]

53 minutes ago, Taeolas said:

Second shocker was seeing that the Weatherman COVID'ed (his wife tested positive for COVID) out and couldn't run.

Wait, I thought Joe went out during qualifying.

1 hour ago, ams1001 said:

Does the diabetic teen need a whole backstory every time? We get it, diabetes makes it harder.

It's a good story. Besides, when I think "diabetes" and "representation," I think "Scott Malikinson" and "Wilford Brimley." If she wants to tell her story (for lack of a better word) to make diabetics at least feel better, more power to her.

Edited August 16, 2022 by Lantern7

[SophiaD]

Congratulations to Tyler Yamauchi (a particular favorite of mine), Donovan Metoyer, Josh Levin, RJ Roman, and Flip (another favorite!)  So sweet to see everyone cheering him on like that.  Stage 2 just got significantly more interesting for me and I hope he goes all of the way.  Congrats to all of the teen finishers, too, of course.  I'm bummed for Barclay, Sean, Jody Avila, and Jamie Rahn.

Joe made it to the finals, but didn't hit a buzzer and wasn't eligible for the Power Tower.  Which felt like a loss to him, because he has had such great success until this year.  

I agree with @Taeolas that the newer ladies need to train more on the Jumping Spider.  I miss watching Flex and Jessie Graf soar through it.  

I like this year's Stage 1 course better than the finals courses.  It seems better balanced and doesn't favor one type of athlete more explicitly than others, whereas finals courses seem to depend on upper body strength so much.

Looks like we'll get the rest of Stage 1 next week and some Stage 2 folks as well.  I wonder if Nate will be able to make it through the Jumping Spider?  

Edited August 16, 2022 by SophiaD

[eel21788]

14 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

It's a good story. Besides, when I think "diabetes" and "representation," I think "Scott Malikinson" and "Wilford Brimley." If she wants to tell her story (for lack of a better word) to make diabetics at least feel better, more power to her.

You left out Mary Tyler Moore, Nick Jonas and Jean Smart.

[DEL901]

3 hours ago, eel21788 said:

You left out Mary Tyler Moore, Nick Jonas and Jean Smart.

And Bret Michaels. 

[Quilt Fairy]

Most of the time I felt like I was watching the kid's version of ANW.  

[Vermicious Knid]

Absolutely no reason to montage finishers on Stage 1. STOP IT. We want to see the successful runs, especially by the favorites, not the cannon fodder falling.

[TimothyQ]

15 hours ago, Vermicious Knid said:

Absolutely no reason to montage finishers on Stage 1. STOP IT. We want to see the successful runs, especially by the favorites, not the cannon fodder falling.

This, so much. We get a lot of the guy who tried to flip into spider jump but they WWWA’d other finishers. Just terrible. 

[SophiaD]

Quote

Most of the time I felt like I was watching the kid's version of ANW.  

I've felt that way all season.  Perfectly put.  I think the Drew thing threw them off so badly, they are trying to make it a more family-friendly show, which is why hearing only wholesome stories and seeing people flip into the jumping spider, and focusing less on quirky characters who might have something questionable in their backgrounds.  

Edited August 18, 2022 by SophiaD

[enoughcats]

1 hour ago, SophiaD said:

focusing less on quirky characters who might have something questionable in their backgrounds.  

Or on characters who are too young to have anything much in their backgrounds other than pets, health and death.

[Rickster]

8 hours ago, SophiaD said:

I've felt that way all season.  Perfectly put.  I think the Drew thing threw them off so badly, they are trying to make it a more family-friendly show, which is why hearing only wholesome stories and seeing people flip into the jumping spider, and focusing less on quirky characters who might have something questionable in their backgrounds.  

I've wondered all season where is the next generation of competitors in their early 20's, since at least on the male side, some of the competitors are starting to get long in the tooth. The show has certainly been around long enough to find them. But I think you're right. They've intentionally skipped an age group to focus on teens. I think eliminating walk ons is also a factor. It will be interesting to see what happens as some of these teens hit college and can focus less on training or get distracted by real life, while the "old guard" continues to age out.

[mlp]

I can understand eliminating walk-ons during the pandemic because those people spend a lot of time in large group situations and managing that would take a lot of extra personnel and expense.  I hope they bring it back when it's safe to do so because the "unknowns" brought interest to the competition.

I hated to see Sean Bryant and Joe Moravsky out of it as they're two of my favorites.  I miss Daniel Gil too.  I know that not everyone likes him but I do and, whatever anyone's opinion of his persona is, he's really good.  I don't remember seeing Nick Hansen this time around.  He's another favorite and I don't know if he's in or out.

[DEL901]

Did Grant McCarty compete this year?

[VartanFan]

Nick Hansen went out early this year and we never saw grant. I wasn’t sad to see Moravsky out. 
 

I audibly gasped when Sean Bryan and Austin Gray went out so early. And I was bummed that the guy with arguably to most annoying group of side liners (country boy) made it through. 

[Rickster]

52 minutes ago, mlp said:

I can understand eliminating walk-ons during the pandemic because those people spend a lot of time in large group situations and managing that would take a lot of extra personnel and expense.  I hope they bring it back when it's safe to do so because the "unknowns" brought interest to the competition.

I agree, but cynically I could argue that eliminating walk-ons also allows the show to vet all the competitors thoroughly and avoid any potential media or legal embarrassments from the unknowns.

[Dewey Decimate]

I thought that Tetherball obstacle was a dud. A momentum killer, boring to watch, and didn't seem to exhibit any particular ninja-skills. At the end of each fail, they really needed the Price is Right sad trombone.

Other than that, not a bad ep, except for the atrocious FFing through successful runs. Quite a few classics made it through. After RJ Roman's speedy run, I was wishing they'd let any extra time to accrue cell-phone-plan-like to his Stage 2 attempt!

[Good Queen Jane]

It was a double bummer that Joe Moravsky was DQ'd not because he tested positive for COVID, but because his wife did. I understand the reasoning, but it would be awful if Joe never tested positive. It is possible to live with someone who has COVID and not get it yourself. However, the last thing the show would want is all the competitors going down before Stage 4 because of infections.

[DEL901]

11 minutes ago, Good Queen Jane said:

It was a double bummer that Joe Moravsky was DQ'd not because he tested positive for COVID, but because his wife did. I understand the reasoning, but it would be awful if Joe never tested positive. It is possible to live with someone who has COVID and not get it yourself. However, the last thing the show would want is all the competitors going down before Stage 4 because of infections.

I would imagine he is also needed at home to care for the kids since his wife will need to isolate fr9m them if the are negative. 

[Taeolas]

Isolating when you've been exposed has been the standard for COVID for years now; so Joe's DQ situation, while frustrating, does make sense, even if he never tests positive for it. 

Sadly, Ninja Warrior has such a tight filming schedule and travel requirements, all it takes is one positive test at the wrong time to hose his opportunity for the year as it was this time. 

[enoughcats]

18 hours ago, Rickster said:

to vet all the competitors thoroughly and avoid any potential media or legal embarrassments from the unknowns.

Did I read earlier this season that all the participants were there by invitation, and their air fare(s) and Hotel stays were paid for by production?

Which suggests a non-sister competition that is more parcour, where the competitors sleep in tents, really rough it, and have NO idea what the obstacles will be,

[Terrafamilia]

On 8/15/2022 at 8:59 PM, ams1001 said:

Does the diabetic teen need a whole backstory every time? We get it, diabetes makes it harder.

On 8/15/2022 at 10:24 PM, Lantern7 said:

It's a good story. Besides, when I think "diabetes" and "representation," I think "Scott Malikinson" and "Wilford Brimley."

On 8/16/2022 at 12:51 PM, eel21788 said:

You left out Mary Tyler Moore, Nick Jonas and Jean Smart.

On 8/16/2022 at 4:33 PM, DEL901 said:

And Bret Michaels. 

Not to mention the fact that there has already been a type 1 diabetic to competed on the show.

[ams1001]

6 minutes ago, Terrafamilia said:

Not to mention the fact that there has already been a type 1 diabetic to competed on the show.

Yes, I remember him. He had an adorable service dog, too. :)

[Quilt Fairy]

On 8/18/2022 at 9:19 PM, Dewey Decimate said:

I thought that Tetherball obstacle was a dud. A momentum killer, boring to watch, and didn't seem to exhibit any particular ninja-skills.

I felt just the opposite.  It's not perfect because it can use up a lot of time, but it was time for something a little different there.  Also, there is no place where a skilled ninja can skip through part of it, which was happening on the previous obstacles in that spot.  

[Taeolas]

Actually, as we saw on one of the attempts, there does seem to be a way for a Ninja to skip the tetherball part. 

One of the ninjas (I can't recall who but it was late in the ep) had missed the landing multiple times and run out of momentum. So they had to climb back up, and instead of swinging the tether around again, they tried to jump straight to the landing. And they almost made it. I'm sure a lot of ninjas noticed that and will consider that, maybe for next year if it's still around. I'm sure the course designers noticed it as well so there might be a clause to stop that in the future. 

[Quilt Fairy]

27 minutes ago, Taeolas said:

Actually, as we saw on one of the attempts, there does seem to be a way for a Ninja to skip the tetherball part. 

One of the ninjas (I can't recall who but it was late in the ep) had missed the landing multiple times and run out of momentum. So they had to climb back up, and instead of swinging the tether around again, they tried to jump straight to the landing. And they almost made it. I'm sure a lot of ninjas noticed that and will consider that, maybe for next year if it's still around. I'm sure the course designers noticed it as well so there might be a clause to stop that in the future. 

By the time that happened, that ninja had already used the tether ball, and I'm sure there's a rule that it must be used.  Or, as you say, there will be one next year.