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S37.E02: Very Strong Warrior Energy

chitowngirl

By chitowngirl
in The Amazing Race

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Rodney

Rodney

I really thought that Bernie & Carrigain's fighting was a prelude to their elimination.  I'm stunned that they rallied at the Intersection Roadblock (thanks to Scott keeping Bernie focused), nailed the Detour, and managed to survive!

Melinda & Erika and Courtney & Jasmin, the other women's teams, recovered nicely, too, from the last leg!

Jonathan was calmer on this leg, so I don't begrudge him and Ana winning the leg.  But damn.  After how well they ran the leg, Scott & Lori were soooooooo close!

Sorry to lose Ernest & Bridget, but they kind of earned it due to Ernest's awful performance at the Roadblock.  He dragged their team and Brett & Mark's down a long way.

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Rodney

Rodney

(edited)
17 minutes ago, InDueTime said:

I don't think that there has been team fighting this early in a season. 

Ronald & Christina (TAR12) and Justin & Jennifer (TAR19) were fighting as early as leg two, as well, thanks to Ronald and Jennifer, respectively.  Natalie & Nadiya were fighting as early as halfway through leg one in TAR24.  Big part of why their return resulted in their going out first.

Edited by Rodney
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Skooma

Skooma

(edited)

I enjoyed Racers reverting to the time honored TAR tradition of thanking people in every country BUT Portugal (or Brazil) with "Obigato."  Some team did it once in the US on the last leg as I recall but don't remember who.  😅

Sorry to see the Dad/Daughter team go.  Kudos to the acrobat guy that was partnered with "Dad" who somehow kept his cool through all 17 tries.  Most people would probably have lost it by then.

Was impressed by Mormon Guy making up all that time this leg and glad to see Jonathan has calmed down some and realized he was way out of control in Leg 1.  

I am a bit surprised how poorly the We Waited 7 Years to be on TAR Brothers are at every task.  They don't seem to work together too well so far.

I rather have seen the bickering friends or whoever they were that were screaming at each other at the airport go instead.  I can't stand the screaming at each other teams.  That's not what I watch TAR for.

Edited by Skooma
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dancingdreamer

dancingdreamer

I was hoping Scott and Lori would  come in first, they ran a good leg. Jonathan  felt bad about pouting  last week, so ,because  it was there  anniversary,  I don't  mind them coming  in first.

Poor Mark, Ernest just couldn't  get those drums, even  though he tried so hard, if you don't  have the rhythm,  you just take a lot longer. It sure dragged  Mark down though.

I'm glad they blurred out the Sumo wrestler  bits, that canvas is hard to deal with, especially  on the skinnier people. I've had Mochi, mine was from Costco. lol

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Lantern7

Lantern7

Good episode. There are still too many Racers to keep track of. Luckily, we have inspired tasks and sumo wrestlers. And Phil. You can never go wrong with Phil.

Intersection was okay, I guess. I would have held off on it for a few legs. This early in the game, teams don't need to have a preference to make foursomes. It's first-come, first-serve. Roadblock with different partners was a good idea, and the Taiko drums was a decent challenge.

Is it bad to wonder where the sumo wrestler was pulling the clues from? I don't remember seeing a table or a fanny pack. Also, there was pixelation. Not a pleasant thought.

Has anyone here eaten mochi? I can't remember if I have. Well, at least I have an excuse to go and find it now.

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Ancaster

Ancaster

3 hours ago, Rodney said:

 

Sorry to lose Ernest & Bridget, but they kind of earned it due to Ernest's awful performance at the Roadblock.  He dragged their team and Brett & Mark's down a long way.

I felt bad for them as they seemed like pleasant people, but I kept thinking how awful it would be if his partner (Mark?) from the taiko drumming had been eliminated.

1 hour ago, Lantern7 said:

 

Has anyone here eaten mochi? I can't remember if I have. Well, at least I have an excuse to go and find it now.

 

I had mochi when I was in Japan.  I didn't like it - to me it was like chewing on a massive piece of gum.  It's traditional at the New Year.  Every year the government has to issue warnings to cut the mochi into little bits, because every year there are choking deaths, particularly among the elderly.

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Fake Jan Brady

Fake Jan Brady

Well, hello all the teams I was confused about last week; this week was a lot easier to sort them out.

I really like the unexpected pairings at the Intersection who aced it: Scott & Bernie and Jonathan & Jack.

There was precious little tension at the end because Han & Holden hadn't gotten a bio package during the episode like Ernest & Bridget did - a sign of doom.

Ernest would've been high on my enemies list if the ridiculously beautiful Mark had been eliminated; how handsome can one man be??

 

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shura

shura

(edited)
6 hours ago, Skooma said:

I enjoyed Racers reverting to time honored TAR tradition of thanking people in every country BUT Portugal (or Brazil) with "Obigato."  Some team did it once in the US on the last league as I recall but don't know who.  😅

They were saying ‘Arigato’ or even the more polite ‘Arigato gozaimasu’.

I question Phil’s assertion that the people have been playing Taiko drums for 12,000 years.  It is simply impossible to know, seeing how there can be no records of anything that happened before writing was invented, and no archeological artifact made of wood and rawhide can survive for so long.

25 minutes ago, Fake Jan Brady said:

Well, hello all the teams I was confused about last week; this week was a lot easier to sort them out.

It was?  My reaction to seeing half of them start the leg was ‘Who is this?’ 🙂

Edited by shura
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Haleth

Haleth

I was in tears laughing at the teams trying to move the sumo wrestler. He was a good sport to mess with them that way. I also loved the way the drum leader messed with the contestants when they got the routine correct. Everyone was having fun. Well, except for Ernest and Mark. That was painful.

Wow, Scott and Laurie nailed that leg.

There are still a few teams that make me say “who?”

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KeithJ

KeithJ

I do not like the Intersection. You shouldn't have to put your fate in the hands of another team. I really felt bad for Ernest. It's bad enough letting a teammate down but when you also let down two other people, that's tough.

However, Scott and Bernie getting the drum routine on the first try was impressive.

I also really hope none of the racers think they actually pushed the sumo wrestler out of the ring. :)

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chaifan

chaifan

Well, to answer last week's question of will racers be released in strict order of mat appearance, or will they jockey between the Dance arrivals and Sing arrivals...  they were let go in order of actual time they got to the mat.  So all Sing racers were behind the Dance racers.  There was about an hour's difference between the first Dance team's departure and the first Sing team's departure.

But, I am glad they're back to normal departures, based on mat arrival time, and not the bunching we've had for several years.  Yeah!

Did I miss a talking head explanation with the Green Gamers explaining that one of them obviously has lived in Japan?  He knew the language, knew where the bridge was, but I don't remember hearing him say "oh, I lived here for ___ years".  Or any other teams bitching about him having an advantage because of that.

I'm sorry to see father & daughter gone, I liked them.  But, it was a fair elimination.  Towards the end, I really didn't want to see any of the teams eliminated.  I realize I pretty much like all the racers at this point.  

The mochi task seemed to be a lot quicker/easier than the preview made it out to be.  I was worried about another lopsided task option.  I think Pops & Jeff may be toast if there's another cooking task, though.  Those were not good looking mochis!  I think the mochi judges were very forgiving of size & shape of the mochi balls.  For everyone.

Interesting how some guys took off their shirts for the Sumo task, others didn't.  The Sumo judge was hilarious.  And yes, where did he get those clues from???  

 

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bunnyface

bunnyface

10 hours ago, InDueTime said:

Did the last two teams wrestle the Sumo judge? I didn't see it. 

So long, Ernest and Bridget. They seemed like a nice team.

I don't think that there has been team fighting this early in a season. 

It probably went so fast, it wouldn't show up on camera.  The guy gave a few of the teams some trouble, but let all of them push him out.  Towards the end, I'm pretty sure they could just put a finger in his chest and he backed up.  He let them off very easily.

2 hours ago, shura said:

They were saying ‘Arigato’ or even the more polite ‘Arigato gozaimasu’.

I question Phil’s assertion that the people have been playing Taiko drums for 12,000 years.  It is simply impossible to know, seeing how there can be no records of anything that happened before writing was invented, and no archeological artifact made of wood and rawhide can survive for so long.

It was?  My reaction to seeing half of them start the leg was ‘Who is this?’ 🙂

Because I am of a certain age, I kept waiting for "domo arigato (Mr. Roboto)."

The two girls in the airport fighting, can't remember their names:  I kind of understand what Ms. Ego was saying.  I think you almost have to believe you're better than everyone else to get through that experience of The Race.  I mean, you don't say it or even SHOUT it in front of other teams.  But you have to believe it somewhere down deep to keep yourself motivated.

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aghst

aghst

3 hours ago, choclatechip45 said:

I was impressed with Scott & Lori especially Scott during the intersection task. 

The mochi task didn't seem that much harder.

Were Scott and Lori wearing different Salt Lake t-shirts from leg 1?

Well after coming off like a weirdo, Scott coached up Bernie with his dad energy, even if he “empowered” Lori all those years to raise their octo brood, to power through the Taiko drums.

He also figured out the sumo band thing quickly.  Other teams had multiple attempts until they figured out some of the details.

The mochi wasn’t as physically demanding as that one guy thought it would be.  But looks like the judge was pretty lax, approving the dough for all 3 teams on first check.  Only the lumberjacks didn’t make balls small and same in size.

And those mochi looked pretty unappetizing.

Tough leg for Ernest and Bridget.  I think Ernest gave up too often figuring that he messed up.  But if he faked it and finished the rest of the routine, maybe the judge would have let them slide because they had over double the number of attempts other teams had.  After X number of attempts producers may tell judges to pass them unless they are obviously way off.

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iMonrey

iMonrey

The Fork in the Road continued to fuck over teams that chose Sing last week. Alyssa and Josiah should have been first to depart since they were first in their group, but they were 5th to depart. And the trailing teams got the worst flight despite finishing 3rd thru 6th in their group. The fair thing would have been to allow the first two 1st place teams to depart at the same time, followed by the two 2nd place teams, etc. They basically ignored the whole Fork thing and gave them departures based on their overall finishes rather than where they finished in their groups. Which makes Mark and Larry getting eliminated despite finishing 8th seem even more unfair.

I’m not crazy about the Intersection either because it forces teams to rely on some other team rather than their own racing ability. But to be fair (or at least generous), Brett and Mark should have teamed up with Carson and Jack, obviously a much stronger team. I don't know why they felt obligated to pair up with Ernest and Bridget, 'tho it sounded like maybe they had a pre-existing agreement to team up with whoever was waiting at the clue box in front of them.

So, the reward for winning this leg was hiking up Mount Kilimanjaro? Uh, no thanks. 

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Ilovepie

Ilovepie

12 hours ago, Skooma said:

Kudos to the acrobat guy that was partnered with "Dad" who somehow kept his cool through all 17 tries.  Most people would probably have lost it by then.

That was rough! I didn't love Bernie & Carrigan arguing because they were too lazy to try to get on the second flight, but I totally laughed at the calm assessment that "there will be someone struggling". She was right! Scott redeemed himself for me a little. They also stayed calm and he totally helped Bernie rock those drums! What a comeback - from last to almost first!

I am rooting for the 7-year auditioners, but damn, they are struggling. Two young healthy guys should be at the front of the pack. They are barely squeaking by at this point. A couple more legs and all the weak teams will be gone. Get it together guys!

Those Vegas guys are a force to be reckoned with. He was dragged down by Earnest. I think he did try to have a positive attitude and help him, but after that many tries, I don't blame him for being frustrated. I think he could have been a first try passer on his own, just like he and his husband were at the wrestling challenge. They didn't panic even though they were the back of the pack (I'm looking at you Han and Holden!) and just paid attention to detail and banged it out on their first try! I love them.

My other favorites are Pops & Jeff. Love those lumberjacks swinging the mallet at that mochi - it seemed right in their wheelhouse! I am actually glad a few teams did the mochi. It didn't seem as hard as most teams thought it would be.

So far, the locations and challenges have been great. Loving how the head drummer and the sumo wrestler messed with them before giving a clue. Even a little airport drama - yay! So far, this season is back on track!

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Jodithgrace

Jodithgrace

I was so excited to see them go to Osaka! I was just there last year and was on that bridge. I also saw a sumo wrestling match which was amazing. I love mochi, but not in those large hunks. The ones they sell here in the states are very good. They are filled with ice cream and are in the freezer section of the supermarket. 
I laughed when the one team told the lumberjacks that the mochi should be the size of mushrooms. Um, yeah, mushrooms vary widely in size so not the best comparison. 
The Mormons were incredible this leg, going from last to second place. I felt bad for the guys who got teamed up with Dad and daughter. Ernest was so bad at the drums. The intersection seemed to work out well for everybody but them.  I can’t say I even remember Intersections from past races, so I’m not sure I’d call it a “classic.”

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Valmafra

Valmafra

1 hour ago, Jodithgrace said:

I can’t say I even remember Intersections from past races, so I’m not sure I’d call it a “classic.”

It's because the last one was 21 seasons ago i.e. a full decade-and-a-half has passed since S16, when Miss Teen South Carolina Caite Upton (a.k.a. the Iraq and everywhere like such as) got Intersected with Big Brother 11 winner Jordan Lloyd for a bungee-jump Roadblock in Hamburg.  

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Skooma

Skooma

3 hours ago, iMonrey said:

So, the reward for winning this leg was hiking up Mount Kilimanjaro? Uh, no thanks. 

And I think it was one of the most awesome prizes TAR has ever given out.  Ten days instead of the mere 3 or 4 day trips to some boring tourist trap health spa resort prizes they usually give out. 

Instead climbing up in slow, easy stages with deluxe camping put up by others.  Going through all those eco zones.  Standing on the top of one of the most iconic mountains in the entire world.  Wow!!!

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Ancaster

Ancaster

(edited)
21 hours ago, iMonrey said:

 

So, the reward for winning this leg was hiking up Mount Kilimanjaro? Uh, no thanks. 

Uh, yes please.  Though I couldn't help but think that it's a good job the woman who is afraid of steps/stairs/heights didn't win.

17 hours ago, Haleth said:

They get a voucher. The Kilimanjaro suggestion was basically an Expedia commercial. 

Thank you - I have always assumed they get to choose how they want to spend a certain amount of Expedia money and the destination given is just an example of how they could spend the $ amount that is won, but have never seen it confirmed.

Edited by Ancaster
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Valmafra

Valmafra

(edited)
10 hours ago, shura said:

I question Phil’s assertion that the people have been playing Taiko drums for 12,000 years.  It is simply impossible to know, seeing how there can be no records of anything that happened before writing was invented, and no archeological artifact made of wood and rawhide can survive for so long.

 

He misspoke given production's failure to proofread their own script - in other words, they mistakenly added an extra zero:

 

Quote

Taiko drummers have been using these powerful instruments for more than 1,200 years. 

 

C.E./A.D. 825 is the early Heian* period when next week's destination Kyoto achieved its cultural ascendance; however, taikos date even further back to the Kofun (keyhole-shaped tomb mound) era between C.E./A.D. 250-600 as seen in the leftmost figurine/haniwa below:

 

ThreeHaniwa.jpg.3e5bc4839fee6f0ef540d0cbe980cba8.jpg

 

* With an urban grid plan modelled after Xi'an in China, whose renowned Terracotta Warriors were visited in Season 6's penultimate leg. 

Edited by Valmafra
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chitowngirl

chitowngirl

  • Author
2 hours ago, Haleth said:

They get a voucher. The Kilimanjaro suggestion was basically an Expedia commercial. 

I’ve noticed that when Phil is telling the first place team about a sponsored prize, you don’t see him telling them. There is a video and a voiceover. In real time, he’s probably telling them they won an Expedia voucher worth $$ they can use after the race.

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chaifan

chaifan

The Bernie/Carrigan discussion reminded me of one I had with my mom.  It was her first time abroad and she spent the first day complaining about how everything was "different".  (We were in France.)  I said to her at the end of the day that if she kept complaining about everything, she would be miserable, I would be miserable, the trip would be miserable.  I pretty much told my 83 year old mother she needed an attitude adjustment.  And, it worked.  The next day she turned it around, and we ended up having a really nice trip.

I was glad to see B/C's conversation had that same effect.  There seemed to be an attitude adjustment, and they did OK the rest of the leg.  I think Bernie was lucky to be paired with Scott.  He was really patient with her, and does well in Dad Mode.

 

 

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Stardancer Supreme

Stardancer Supreme

15 hours ago, Haleth said:

I was in tears laughing at the teams trying to move the sumo wrestler. He was a good sport to mess with them that way. I also loved the way the drum leader messed with the contestants when they got the routine correct. Everyone was having fun. Well, except for Ernest and Mark. That was painful.

Same! I cackled at Nick and Mike channeling all their frustration into the final match and not being able to move the wrestler until he decided to move himself. That was fun to watch! 

Who knew that Ernest would be the lone rhythmless racer? I'm glad Mark was able to hold his frustration and not unleash it on Ernest. 

I'm also glad Jonathan brought it down a notch or ten. I can imagine how he must have cringed watching episode 1...

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shura

shura

5 hours ago, Cotypubby said:

Last week someone here was saying they thought the judged challenges were all rigged because no one ever gets through on the first try, well here we have one team doing the drums on the first try (& another on the 17th!!) and one team getting through the sumo challenge on the first try!

Love the last one as an example of a non-rigged challenge 🙂.

Fun fact - the banner behind the sumo judge read ‘Expedia’ in katakana (talk about an Expedia commercial!).  Wonder who it was for.

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dgpolo

dgpolo

(edited)
On 3/13/2025 at 12:52 PM, Jodithgrace said:

I can’t say I even remember Intersections from past races, so I’m not sure I’d call it a “classic.”

The one I remember was when Dustin and Kandice had to team up with Charla and Mirna, those teams despised each other.

On 3/12/2025 at 10:05 PM, InDueTime said:

Did the last two teams wrestle the Sumo judge? I didn't see it. 

So long, Ernest and Bridget. They seemed like a nice team.

I don't think that there has been team fighting this early in a season. 

I think the goat yoga women had an epic passive/aggressive fight on the first leg, I think because one of them talked to another passenger about the destination?

The Sumo judge was making the funniest faces!

Edited by dgpolo
Correction to correct team
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Netfoot

Netfoot

(edited)

I love The Amazing race!

Most of the competitors are such whiny, sniveling children I'm surprised their mummies allow them out unsupervised. I still have not found anyone whose name I consider worth remembering. At this point I don't care who goes and who stays.

Three favourites from the episode (In ascending order): 

  1. Drum-Master.
  2. Sumo guy.
  3. Phil.

And yet, I loved the episode. The challenges were mostly interesting and everyone seemed to be having a good time, for the most part. I would have liked a little more interaction with the twin greeters, but I recognize that the editors have a lot to fit in to a fixed time period.

As the race progresses I expect some of the teams will endear themselves to me and others will irritate. In the mean time I simply look forward eagerly to the next entertaining episode.

So yes, I love The Amazing race!

Edited by Netfoot
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North of Eden

North of Eden

Maybe its just me but if I am 15 attempts behind I would not be wasting time hugging my partner or daughter in a pity fest. That was a time to get cracking and who knows it might have saved the father daughter against the siblings if they hadn't bled time like that. Too bad I liked them. They were barely on last weeks show and now they are gone.

iMonrey

iMonrey

I actually thought Brett & Mark were going to be eliminated, because in the talking head where Mark was talking about his frustration with the drumming he almost looked like he was tearing up. The fact that they weren't eliminated shows how much empathy he actually had for Earnest during that ordeal. Which makes me like him that much more.

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Valmafra

Valmafra

16 hours ago, Netfoot said:

I would have liked a little more interaction with the twin greeters, but I recognize that the editors have a lot to fit in to a fixed time period.

Fun fact: they're the successors to the original shrine-maidens who welcomed Unfinished Business's Final Ten at the site of Commodore Perry's landing (in the mid-nineteenth century)!

kurihama-pit-stop.jpg.f5759a8c167cd0da5fcdb7cb648e26f2.jpg

 

vlcsnap-2025-03-15-12h09m39s442.png.3f72a1be48d832c33444a77ed391811d.png

Japan-ep-2.thumb.webp.6af66a088ccf74edcd69340dcfad2c3c.webp

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Ancaster

Ancaster

10 hours ago, OlderThanDirt said:

If Vegas guy (Matt?) understood the drum score so well, why couldn't he and the instructor have coached Everett the way Scott got his partner to the 1st try win?

 

9 hours ago, iMonrey said:

I actually thought Brett & Mark were going to be eliminated, because in the talking head where Mark was talking about his frustration with the drumming he almost looked like he was tearing up. The fact that they weren't eliminated shows how much empathy he actually had for Earnest during that ordeal. Which makes me like him that much more.

Mark was very empathetic, but as he said to Brett/in a talking head, he barely knew Ernest and had no idea how to help him and motivate and encourage him more than he was.  (Don't remember the actual words.)  I can't imagine the frustration.  Add to that the fact that he and Brett were as far away in last place as Ernest and his daughter, I can only imagine they were seeing elimination as a very real possibility, through no fault of their own.

iMonrey

iMonrey

13 hours ago, Ancaster said:

Add to that the fact that he and Brett were as far away in last place as Ernest and his daughter, I can only imagine they were seeing elimination as a very real possibility, through no fault of their own.

And that, in a nutshell, is why I don't like the Intersection. It was fine when the task was something like bungee jumping - something everyone is going to get through. This could have really knocked someone out of the race.

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Ancaster

Ancaster

2 hours ago, iMonrey said:

And that, in a nutshell, is why I don't like the Intersection. It was fine when the task was something like bungee jumping - something everyone is going to get through. This could have really knocked someone out of the race.

Or what about the woman who refused to go down the water slide, lo those many years ago?  (Did they take a time penalty in the end?)  Should someone not her partner have lost because of her?

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