S25: Misti & Jim

[elychari]

I'm keeping an open mind about this team. For all his bloviating, Jim was never shown to shout at or blame Misty (yet). He has not talked trash about other teams so I can put up with hie bragging. I like Misty when she kept on with the road block and not crying.

[Chyna]

Misti's little-girl hair bow bugs the crap out of me.

[Donny Ketchum]

Misti's little-girl hair bow bugs the crap out of me.

When has she worn that?  I've never seen one of those in her hair before.

[Chyna]

In the latest episode, in Denmark--she had a big, black bow tied in the back of her hair. Ridiculous. My kid is too old for big hair bows and she's at least 30 years younger than Misti.

[LizBug]

Is it just me or do their profiles look remarkable similar in the photo Chyna posted?

Is it just me or do their profiles look remarkable similar in the photo Chyna posted?

[Chyna]

Same guy did both of their noses.

[auntlada]

In the latest episode, in Denmark--she had a big, black bow tied in the back of her hair. Ridiculous. My kid is too old for big hair bows and she's at least 30 years younger than Misti.

 

And she's a few years too young to be a bow head (although even if she weren't, she should have grown out of it by now).

[Donny Ketchum]

A good job at overcoming the Speed Bump, and Misti at least kept her cool at the Roadblock.  I'd like to see exactly when it occurred to her that she had to use one hand at the Detour, though.  I don't think it was shown when it occurred to her.  Still, they're lucky no team thought to U-Turn them and at least try and force out their Save, so they still have it.

 

But this team's villain edit has truly kicked in with Jim's latest confessionals.  Especially his not-so-nice one about Maya and the smell of the tannery.

[Camera One]

Maybe they are rushing, or maybe they are overconfident, but I hope they have realized they need to read the clue, and observe being rushing headlong and doing the tasks incorrectly.

[Lingo]

A good job at overcoming the Speed Bump, and Misti at least kept her cool at the Roadblock.  I'd like to see exactly when it occurred to her that she had to use one hand at the Detour, though.  I don't think it was shown when it occurred to her.

They did show it. At one point they watched the demonstration again and we heard Misti gasp that he was doing it one-handed. (Then they edited in a sound clip of Jim barking "Misti!" without showing him saying it, which always strikes me as suspicious.)

 

I felt bad for Misti through most of the episode as it seemed that she was really struggling to find a way to make herself useful.  But I admired the way she stepped up to do the Roadblock, passed Shelley, and then muscled her way in and out of that Roadblock traffic jam.

 

But this team's villain edit has truly kicked in with Jim's latest confessionals.  Especially his not-so-nice one about Maya and the smell of the tannery.

Maybe the show is trying to paint them as villains, but I'm not going to blame Jim yet.  I may not be remembering it correctly, but I didn't feel like he was making fun of Maya, he was just calling a spade a spade.  He was definitely more intense this episode, and maybe a little brusquer with Misti at times.  But actually the part that bothered me most was him at the Roadblock, trying to psyche Shelley out with his "blood in the water!" shouting.  Now, I don't think that sort of thing is against the rules, or evil, or even bad sportsmanship, really.  I just don't like to watch teams fight with each other.

[cooksdelight]

There has been speculation about Jim's steroid use during his bodybuilding days. I found an article that supports it:

 

http://www.nytimes.com/1996/12/21/nyregion/despite-the-dangers-of-steroids-bodybuilders-are-still-tempted.html

 

 

One of the four, who insisted on anonymity, said they had found the recipe for GHB in the second edition of a book, ''The Underground Steroid Handbook.'' They mixed together several chemicals -- including sodium hydroxide, or lye -- and cooked the concoction. Unfortunately, the police say, they did not wait long enough for the lye to burn off before they drank the brew. One of them, John Rojas, 21, began convulsing, passed out and fell partly into a bag of sodium hydroxide, suffering severe burns to the arms and forehead. Two others were not seriously hurt, but the other, James Raman, 20, was hospitalized for several days with extensive injuries to the lungs and throat. One of the participants said, ''The next time, I think we'll be more careful.''

 

 

This article was written in 1996, so the age is right. And, he's from New York.

[Camera One]

Maybe the show is trying to paint them as villains, but I'm not going to blame Jim yet.  I may not be remembering it correctly, but I didn't feel like he was making fun of Maya, he was just calling a spade a spade.  He was definitely more intense this episode, and maybe a little brusquer with Misti at times.  But actually the part that bothered me most was him at the Roadblock, trying to psyche Shelley out with his "blood in the water!" shouting.  Now, I don't think that sort of thing is against the rules, or evil, or even bad sportsmanship, really.  I just don't like to watch teams fight with each other.

 

I think the clip was partly for humor, to juxtaposition Maya saying that, to Jim's response.

 

In the Bonus Clip, they show Jim talking to Maya on the plane, and I found him a little condescending and dismissive of her, with a total, "I am always right" attitude. 

[fishcakes]

This article was written in 1996, so the age is right. And, he's from New York.

 

 

Where did you read that he's from New York? He has a southern accent and he went to the University of South Carolina for both undergrad and dental school. When he was 20, he was likely in college in South Carolina, not cooking up steroids in a basement in New York. Aside from having the same name and being approximately the right age, I don't see any reason to think that's the same person.

[cooksdelight]

http://dailyentertainmentnews.com/tv/misti-raman-jim-raman-married-dentists-amazing-race-contestants/

 

 

He is the owner-operator at Raman Orthodontics according to his FB page. He is a NY native, having listed as a hometown Massapequa Park, New York. He moved to Charleston, SC; in 2000 and currently resides in Irmo, Couth Carolina.

[Donny Ketchum]

They did show it. At one point they watched the demonstration again and we heard Misti gasp that he was doing it one-handed. (Then they edited in a sound clip of Jim barking "Misti!" without showing him saying it, which always strikes me as suspicious.)

Yeah, I did watch that back with my boyfriend the same night it aired, and she was shown seeing what she was doing wrong.  Good to see that the show did include that moment.

[fishcakes]

http://dailyentertainmentnews.com/tv/misti-raman-jim-raman-married-dentists-amazing-race-contestants/

 

He is the owner-operator at Raman Orthodontics according to his FB page. He is a NY native, having listed as a hometown Massapequa Park, New York. He moved to Charleston, SC; in 2000 and currently resides in Irmo, Couth Carolina.

 

Oh okay. But in that case, I think it's weird that he has the accent he has.

[cooksdelight]

Not if you lived down here for a while. Southern accents are easy to pick up, without you even being aware. And his isn't as thick as the one for people who've lived here all their lives. :)

[Chyna]

I have a friend from Chicago who lived in Birmingham, AL, for a year, and she definitely picked up a Southern lilt even in that short of a time. Fortunately, it only took about a month for her Midwest tongue to come back. :)

 

Misti seems to have an issue with that old adage about the definition of insanity: Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. I can understand doing the sandwich task or the tea task incorrectly one time. Even twice. But after that, you need to consider that you might be missing something, and re-read the clue (or rewatch the demo, as the case may be). But in the last two eps, she has wasted an enormous amount of time doing the same wrong thing 9 times or more before checking for a missing detail.

[cooksdelight]

Maybe if you're in a beauty pageant, you just walk the same walk, wear the same smile, tilt your head the same way... over and over and never question why?? 

 

She's also into the physical fitness pageant-type of competitions. Lord only knows.....

[Camera One]

Misti seems to have an issue with that old adage about the definition of insanity: Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. I can understand doing the sandwich task or the tea task incorrectly one time. Even twice. But after that, you need to consider that you might be missing something, and re-read the clue (or rewatch the demo, as the case may be). But in the last two eps, she has wasted an enormous amount of time doing the same wrong thing 9 times or more before checking for a missing detail.

 

She seemed to give up quite easily and seem helpless too, in the Speed Bump.  I wanted to see her as more competent, but it seems like she does defer to Jim when they are together.  

 

Now, Jim was there for the tea task, so he too was prone to doing the same thing over and over again.  Maybe because he's so confident that he's right all the time?  Ditto for not noticing the flower pot in the parklet task.  That one was much harder to spot for sure, but it shows a tendency to rush through and not notice the details.

[willpwr]

 

http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/lethal-power-drink-puts-hosp-article-1.739254

That article gives a little bit more information in regards to the steroid use, if anyone knows his parent's names it's the only way to be 100% sure since they're mentioned in the article. 

[hincandenza]

I don't know about the steroid stuff, you guys. I mean, it's almost certainly him, but I guess I feel that things he might have done in the long ago past (we're talking 17 years) that hurt only himself, and for which we have no evidence he still does, seem kind of out of bounds.  I'm sure we've had past racers with long-ago drug addictions or convictions for misdemeanor crimes, but it doesn't seem meaningful in the context of the current race.

 

She seemed to give up quite easily and seem helpless too, in the Speed Bump.  I wanted to see her as more competent, but it seems like she does defer to Jim when they are together.  

 

Now, Jim was there for the tea task, so he too was prone to doing the same thing over and over again.  Maybe because he's so confident that he's right all the time?  Ditto for not noticing the flower pot in the parklet task.  That one was much harder to spot for sure, but it shows a tendency to rush through and not notice the details.

 

I think in Jim's defense, when you're doing a Detour together and each of you have your own roles, you can't be expected to necessarily notice what your partner is doing wrong.  The flip side of that was Robbie and Brooke (I think) where Robbie wasn't lifting his teapots high enough, but Brooke didn't notice either.  Granted, the teams that did better this leg were the ones that did that- such as swapping roles in the music challenge, or whoever it was that practiced their tea pouring once before getting judged.

 

The flower pot in the Parklet challenge still bothers me, because it was the kind of tricksy move the show doesn't usually do- and I'm not convinced the other parklet design had any such "gotcha" element.  But, Jim & Misti have bunched up with the rest of the racers multiple times since then, so finishing 6th this last leg is all on their heads at this point.

[Camera One]

The flip side of that was Robbie and Brooke (I think) where Robbie wasn't lifting his teapots high enough, but Brooke didn't notice either.

 

I think it was Brooke who was pouring, and Robbie didn't notice the height of the water, until much later.  

 

I think if your goal is to be a top team, you do focus on your own role, but also note what the other person was doing.  T&T switched who did the pouring and who held the tray.  I'm assuming teams would glance over at the example or even other teams performing the task, and the person standing up doing the pouring (in this case, Jim), would have seen the one-hand supporting the tray, at least eventually.  

 

As you said, this has happened more than once where Jim & Misti bunched up with the rest, so I think their physical strength and the fact that they won the first leg gives people the impression that they're the strongest team, when in fact Adam & Bethany and the Bikers seem to have all elements going at full cylinders so far.

Edited October 26, 2014 by Camera One

[cooksdelight]

For the record, those are his parents. But as you say, it may or may not have any bearing on his performance now. I would guess AR does drug testing, etc. But, still, I don't want him anywhere near my teeth. :)

[Lingo]

I think the clip was partly for humor, to juxtaposition Maya saying that, to Jim's response.

 

In the Bonus Clip, they show Jim talking to Maya on the plane, and I found him a little condescending and dismissive of her, with a total, "I am always right" attitude. 

 

Well I watched that clip too, and I didn't get that impression.  Maybe we see what we want to see.

[Camera One]

Well I watched that clip too, and I didn't get that impression.  Maybe we see what we want to see.

 

What we "want to see"?  Why would I want to see Jim that way?  I didn't dislike Jim before watching the clip.  I agree perception would vary with the person, but it's presumptuous to assume someone saw what they wanted to see.

[Lingo]

I'm sorry, you're right. Maybe I'm desperate to see him as a nice guy. Lord knows I've spent a lot of time defending him here for some reason.

[Minerette]

Now that the spray-on tan is starting to fade, making his teeth a little less blinding, it's occurred to me that Jim may have a thyroid or other physical problem that causes his eyes to bulge out.  It's not normal to be able to see the whites all around the irises.  And the bulging eyes, IMHO, make him look a bit more intimidating and/or crazy than he really is. 

 

Other than his talking heads, where I consider his braggadocio more a self-pep talk than anything else, I've not yet seen him rude, short tempered or less than pleasant to anyone - including his wife. 

 

I started out finding him hard to like, and now I'm finding him hard to dislike. 

[Way Wes Jr]

Other than his talking heads, where I consider his braggadocio more a self-pep talk than anything else, I've not yet seen him rude, short tempered or less than pleasant to anyone - including his wife. 

 

I started out finding him hard to like, and now I'm finding him hard to dislike. 

 

I was ready to assume that Jim was going to be our out-of-control super-intense jerk for the season (Colin, Asshat -who-shall-not-be-named,) but he is winning me over with his demeanor.  (And, since TPTB seem to be trying to give Jim and Misti a "villain" edit, he can't be giving them very much to work with!)  And when I am reminded of his competitive bodybuilding experience, it really softens the impact of his braggadocio; "I am the greatest!," is a very common mindset with individual (as opposed to team,) athletes.

 

As a team, I hate to say it, but Misti will probably be their downfall.  While I loved her taking the Roadblock, as both a semi-physical challenge (Hi Jim!,) and as a confidence re-boost, it avoided her race weakness, which seems to be paying attention to detail.  Which is what will keep them from winning.

[blackwing]

The flower pot in the Parklet challenge still bothers me, because it was the kind of tricksy move the show doesn't usually do- and I'm not convinced the other parklet design had any such "gotcha" element.

But anyone who is observant could have seen that there were two flower designs on the pot, one with 7 petals and one with 8 petals on the other side.  I'd like to think I would have noticed.

 

Not surprised at all to read about potential steroid use.

 

What I'm wondering is if they brought any other clothes with them, or if we are going to have to see him in that too tight blue underarmour shirt the entire time.  Most teams change clothes numerous times throughout the race.  I wonder if he just brought 3 of the same outfit.

[fishcakes]

What we "want to see"?  Why would I want to see Jim that way?  I didn't dislike Jim before watching the clip.  I agree perception would vary with the person, but it's presumptuous to assume someone saw what they wanted to see.

 

This isn't directed at you, Camera One, because I find your posts to be very even-handed, but it does seem to me that a lot of people are really stretching to find reasons to dislike Jim. Plastic surgery, roid rage, screaming at MIsti when the cameras are off -- he's been accused of all these things based on nothing more than, so far as I can tell, having an intense face and a couple of comments about wanting to dominate the race. I have no objections to talking shit about reality show contestants, as long as there's some documented proof of douchebaggery, but so far Jim's been generally pleasant and even helpful to everyone around him.

 

Maybe I'm desperate to see him as a nice guy. Lord knows I've spent a lot of time defending him here for some reason.

 

Yeah, me too. He seems like a decent guy, which makes me want to defend him against all the negative speculation, so I hope he doesn't later turn out to be a dick.

[ProfCrash]

I think that Jim is a type A personality who is insanely competitive and defines himself through his successes. Normally his personality grates because it is accompanies by a whole series of awful behavior justified because he simply ha to win and cannot control his competitive impulse. I keep expecting that from Jim, because of the stereotype, but I have not seen it from him.

 

He has been polite to his competitors, he has helped with clues, he has been supportive when Misti has struggled, he has been a cheerleader, he has tried to help. He has not yelled, screamed, demeaned anyone or generally been that much of an asshole. He has treated Misti and others with a great deal more respect then the wrestlers or the Mom and Daughter team. He has handled their poor performance the last few legs well. Misti has apologized for her screw mistakes but not in the way that other women with controlling partners have apologized. She does not shrink away from him.

 

I can see where the speculation comes from based on the stereotypes but he has not even come close to behaving that way. The article about using steroids seems to tie back to him but who knows what he is doing now. Overall, they are not a team that I am rooting for because the type A hyper competitive have to win everything teams annoy me but they do not bother me.

 

I think I would root for them if it looked like they were trying to enjoy the race on some level but it seems like it is all business to me. I like the teams that can find a balance and are enjoying the locations and travels while competing. They are far more fun to watch.

[aradia22]

I can't deal with teams who don't read the clues.

 

She seemed to give up quite easily and seem helpless too, in the Speed Bump.  I wanted to see her as more competent, but it seems like she does defer to Jim when they are together.

Yeah, I don't have a good read on them. I don't think he's the nicest person but so far I don't think he's an awful jerk. Just overly competitive and prone to fall back on trite gym/triathlon/motivational speaking standbys. Everyone can't be Bethany and Adam and Maya and Amy. As far as how they work as a team, he does kind of act like she needs to be taken care of sometimes (e.g. trying to take more rugs from her). On the other hand, she sometimes acts helpless, like just giving up at hanging the rugs at the speed bump even though she seems athletic and I think they're not that different in height. She raced through ripping the hair off the animal skins but she seemed a little clumsy with the bike. I don't think she intentionally knocked Nici's pack over though and she did seem really apologetic. So I don't know right now. Is she competent but suppressed by Jim? Or does he just know her well enough to know what she can and can't do? He seems supportive during tasks when she's on her own but maybe that's just because he knows that negativity won't help. Maybe she only acts helpless because she knows he'll be there to pick up the slack. I don't know. I watch them for less than an hour every week. I'm not a marriage counselor.

 

Now that the spray-on tan is starting to fade, making his teeth a little less blinding, it's occurred to me that Jim may have a thyroid or other physical problem that causes his eyes to bulge out.  It's not normal to be able to see the whites all around the irises.  And the bulging eyes, IMHO, make him look a bit more intimidating and/or crazy than he really is.

Agreed. I was going to post something similar. I noticed it even more watching it on the TV this week. I snark but I do feel bad that people are perceived a certain way because of looks that they largely can't control. 

 

I see less of a danger of him being like Colin and more of a danger of them ending up like the married doctors on the Afghanimals season. But we're a long ways off from that. 

[cooksdelight]

They have what appears to be a prosperous dental practice, and I don't think they are going to "lose it" on TV and jeopardize that.

[Lingo]

I don't know. I watch them for less than an hour every week. I'm not a marriage counselor.

 

I don't know either.  My teeth are only tooth-colored, after all.  (That's gonna be my go-to excuse for at least the next 7 weeks!)

[blackwing]

Perhaps he has Graves' disease. But even then, I have known people with Graves' disease. Their eyes bulge out a little, but they don't look nearly as menacing as Jim. Perhaps if he smiled more it would help. He doesn't seem cut out for smiling. He seems utterly humourless. He always seems to have a furrowed brow and his TEAM DOMINANT game face on. Doesn't help the overall look if he's trying to avoid looking like someone who could cause some serious harm.

[ProfCrash]

I think he is humorless when competing. He goes into competition mode and is very intense. There were clips of him on the beach camping with the others where he seemed far more laid back.

 

Until I see them being rude to each other or Misti pulling away from Jim or them being rude to the locals, I am going to continue to think that they are good people who are simply very intense when racing. I can't say I enjoy watching them or that I am rooting for them but I don't dislike them and I don't think that there is problem with their marriage.

[Lamb18]

There was one close-up shot of Jim's face in which he was looking down, then his eyes went back up to looking straight ahead and his eyelids were in a normal position, that is, just resting along the tops of his irises.  Then his eyelids kept on moving slowly upwards until the whites above the irises were showing.

[choclatechip45]

I'm surprised he hasn't freaked out on Misti the last two episodes.

[Donny Ketchum]

From what I saw, good, solid racing for another win.  Nothing spectacular, just business, as usual.  Though they had a bit of a struggle at the Detour due to not realizing they needed the rugs, they made up for it with Misti's Roadblock performance (finally, she does one flawlessly).  A fine recovery from their Speed Bump, indeed.  And better yet, they did so in spite of having a leg with no equalizer and starting way back!

 

Too bad Jim blew it all away with their end-of-leg confessional.  What happened to being humbled, Jim?  I knew that was B.S.

[aradia22]

I still don't hate this team but I don't feel like they're ever going to be my favorites. I don't feel a sense of joy when they do well. Maybe because it sets Jim off to bragging. It was nice of him to say that what mattered about the detour was that she stayed safe and it was nice to see Misti do really well at a challenge for once even if she did let Jim carry her bag of hay earlier in the episode. 

 

You know what I really miss? Seeing people socialize. Not fighting or short clips so the viewers can get information about express passes or whatnot but really socializing in between tasks at the airport. Or maybe socializing a little at tasks. I'm not in love with alliances but it was nice to see the racers relax a little at the butter task and then to see Alli help out Te Jay at the detour. I feel like we don't get that a lot with Misti and Jim even though they apparently like Adam and Bethany because so often they're either at the front of the pack or the back of the pack and running their own race.

[Lingo]

So for those of you wondering if the editors are just showing the best of Misti and Jim's behaviour in the episodes, there were a couple of very moments in the Bonus Clips.  The first is of Shelley and Nici at the Pit Stop. Phil asks them who they'd like to see win the Race, and Nici immediately says, "Misti and Jim.  Definitely.  Because they're just nice people."

 

Which is ironic, because in another clip, of Misti and Jim headed in their car to their pitstop, they are apparently asked off-screen who they'd like to see eliminated, and after mentioning the cyclists (because they're strong), who does Jim pick? Shelley and Nici.  Jim says it's because they're negative, and he likes to surround himself with positive people. They start talking about Misti's grandmother, who seems to be the inspiration for their positivity -- she never says anything mean about anybody.  And just by coincidence, it happens to be her grandmother's birthday, and Misti is really happy to win a leg on her birthday.

Edited November 1, 2014 by Lingo

[innominate]

Sorry I'm so late to the party, just managed to catch up the first half of the season. As some of you have mentioned, Misti and Jim have thrown me on a loop too in trying to peg them down. My predictable first impression was 'he's such a typical 'roid junkie and she's the requisite Barbie companion' but then finding out they were dentists totally threw me off (I kinda have a thing for people with MDs, it's a childhood thing) but alas, I've been enjoying moments they have been proving me wrong.

I was dead sure he was Jonathan reincarnation just waiting to be unleashed but I really do hope the Jim we've been seeing is the real Jim and not what we've been expecting from his physical appearance (on and off camera for Misti's sake). For some reason I don't see much of Colin in him from the get go - perhaps because Colin was considerably smaller in size and I don't recall Colin abusing Christie too much, definitely not as repulsive as Jonathan had been and I thought Jim was gonna be a lot more physically controlling with Misti instead of mentally like Lake and Michelle.

 

He then reminded me of Rob of Rob & Kimberly - intense guy but still affectionate with his partner after a couple of episodes. Colin and Christie were such loveless robots. He was competitive in a miserable way whereas Jim's approach is more like a sportsman - super competitive but he wasn't throwing tantrums when things didn't go his way. He tried to solve the problem at hand and vowed to perform and focus better in the next leg. Having said all that, I'm sure that shiny Save pass would help one not to lose his cool easily.

 

I think there are two main reasons Jim has managed to control his what may or may not be there temper. Firstly as someone has mentioned before, they have a pretty substantial practice back home which should be reason enough for any professional to behave. Then I think they have watched enough previous seasons as how ugly some racers can be so this is applicable to all non gimmicky recruits. Although arguably if you're a hot head, you're a hot head. It's so nice too see level headed racers so far this season (except for the whiny Brooke but she hasn't grated on me too much) so far. I only managed to catch pretty extreme tasks in the next six episodes' sneak peek so hopefully there's no major meltdowns or fights because of killer fatigue.
 

On a shallow note, I actually couldn't fathom Misti's attraction towards Jim as I thought she was considerably more attractive and I still get creeped out by the thought of having those eyes anywhere near me but if it was caused by an actual medical condition, then I'm an ass. Although they did look much more compatible in some younger pictures of them from links in previous posts, when his skin wasn't a shade of oompa loompa.

 

Misti has struck me as a pretty efficient racer if she wasn't as jumpy around Jim. I thought it was more of her nervous energy to impress him instead of being scared of him. Like a melded version of Dustin and Kandice for all that blonde pageanting and teeth and Nat and Kat for the doctoring bit (although they had lots of teeth and some blonde in between them too).

They definitely reminded me of Nicole & Travis too partly because of the doctor thing and remarkably with the man in the driver's seat dynamic. That team crashed and burned terribly when Nicole finally succumbed in trying so hard not to fail instead of focusing on the task at hand. Nicole mentioned how their relationship developed from teacher-student to husband-wife that led Travis to sometimes be condescending to her and wanting everything to be perfect. I wonder if Misti and JIm were in the same class as she had mentioned Jim had the highest scores when they were in school together and from their various profiles, I don't think there are more than three years in their age gap.

Yes I'm far too invested in this. Blame it on the amazing editors! They seem to pick up on small things that make me read way too much into. Sorry for the ramble!

[Donny Ketchum]

While they seem to be the team to beat at the moment, this episode started highlighting that there really are teams who might not like them.  Jim needs to stop the bloviating and just have more fun.  Misti seems to be, so Jim should be, too.  Jim did well with the Roadblock and had a strategy I'll at least give him credit for in trying to keep Kym from finishing it in time if he didn't, as well.  He and Misti also didn't panic at the Detour.

 

Stop the ego-inflating, Jim, and I may start rooting for you and Misti.

[Lingo]

Despite Kym and Alli calling them the no-fun team at first, even they seemed to have a pretty good time with them and respect Jim's friendly competitive spirit.  Meanwhile there's another two bonus clips of teams mentioning how much they like the dentists.  Maya says she was uncomfortable around Jim at first, but after he got humbled in Copenhagen, they started to bond about nerd stuff, and Maya says that she appreciates Jim's character.  In other clip, Brooke mentions in passing that they love them.

[Chyna]

I've decided that Misti gets prettier as the Race goes on and she spends less time overdoing her hair and makeup.

[aradia22]

I think this is the first time another team has mentioned disliking them for anything other than being the team to beat. Jim is overly competitive but unlike a lot of other racers I think for the most part he avoids being a jerk about it. At least in person.

[Pallas]

Misti and Jim: Cersei and The Mountain, I very much imagined.

 

Yet I'm with everyone who's marveled at their own shifting impression of this couple.  Along with the amazing animals, it's an ongoing bonus of the show.  We don't just get to see the world, sometimes tricked out in some pretty stereotypical trappings: the native customs and traditional attire tied to the tasks.  We also get to peer inside relationships of all kinds, and in so doing, get a glimpse of our slick prejudices.  

 

With their teamwork, sportsmanship, competence and even keels, Misti and Jim have won me over enough that I now want to help them, not seek out magicks to disarm them , or foresee their ruin.  It was poignant when Misti spoke of Jim's intelligence, because you could see that she wasn't bragging; she was taking aim at the first of those prejudices. She knows, I realized, abashed to realize that I had thought she might not.  She knows it cuts both ways: that perhaps as many people dismiss Jim for his appearance and his demeanor, as are impressed. She has lived this, and made up her mind about it, and acted on her decisions.  She has faced down that disregard, and still does a good job of wearing her resilience lightly.  

 

My shiny new stereotype is that I see MIsti and Jim as both having spent years of competition held in distant cities where they saw only the inside of their hotel rooms and a few multi-use windowless carpeted dungeons, overrun with competitors, crews and cameras.  The motivational cliche -- borrowed from Super Bowl media day  -- was, "This isn't a vacation; this is a business trip."  So I wish them joy.  And maybe that's reserved for vacations where they can fight and not talk to each other for two days, getting a little break from their personal and professional alliance. Whatever it is, I imagine they know that too.  You don't stay and work together for 18 years and treat each other and the world so decently, without it. 

 

Misti and Jim, for the fun!

[blackwing]

On one of the recent episodes, Misti mentioned that Jim went to medical school before he went to dental school.  I'm curious as to more of this story.  Did he finish med school then decide he didn't want to be a doctor?  Did he drop out of med school?

 

In other news, I am shocked that these two are only 36 and 37 years old.  They look far older to me, I pegged them at mid-40s.  I think it's probably the layers of makeup, the tanning and the steroids.

[Donny Ketchum]

I'll give them their due.  Business, as usual.  They dropped their glasses once, but finished the task, and Misti did fine at the Roadblock.  At least we saw they're not a perfect team when they missed the Detour clue for quite some time, but they doubled back, picked the one better-suited to them, and recovered to come in second.  Not a bad leg at all.