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S01.E01: Welcome to Destination X

peachmangosteen

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tv echo

tv echo

(edited)

Did the producers go out of their way to cast the 10 most unlikeable and deceitful people who applied?

I was hoping for something fun and exciting, similar to The Amazing Race, with the added mystery of trying to figure out the clues to where they were. We, the viewers, could have fun figuring out the clues as well.

Instead, we have Survivor-like alliances, deceit and fake personas.

Edited by tv echo
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iMonrey

iMonrey

This show had two strikes against it right out of the gate. 1: Jeffrey Dean Morgan. Negan ruined him for me. 2: Josh from Big Brother. Dear God in Heaven, what casting director keeps booking this cretin? Someone who thinks the mentally unstable make "good TV" I guess. Talk about exploiting low intellect. 

4 hours ago, tv echo said:

I was hoping for something fun and exciting, similar to The Amazing Race, with the added mystery of trying to figure out the clues to where they were. We, the viewers, could have fun figuring out the clues as well.

Instead, we have Survivor-like alliances, deceit and fake personas.

Yeah. They made it way too obvious it was Rome, and the challenge part with the coins made zero sense. 

4 hours ago, tv echo said:

Did the producers go out of their way to cast the 10 most unlikeable and deceitful people who applied?

Sure looks like it. I don't know where they dug up 1960s Barbie but clearly they were looking for "characters."

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KeithJ

KeithJ

12 hours ago, tv echo said:

 

Did the producers go out of their way to cast the 10 most unlikeable and deceitful people who applied?

 

I have to agree.  These people are all awful.  At least Josh went first.  I’ll keep watching but not really rooting for anyone. I’m curious though how you can be a lawyer and flight attendant.  You definitely can’t be doing those 50/50.

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seacliffsal

seacliffsal

I didn't know what to really expect but I was hoping it was going to be more along the line of old school Amazing Race in which they would have to figure out clues to get to Destination X.

But this, with them all traveling on the bus and only brief glimpses of where they are, doesn't appeal that much to me.  I'm also not a fan of JDM and his style of hosting.  Will give this another try, but it seems too centered on the interactions on the bus and not enough about where they actually are IMO.  Was so glad that Josh was first gone-that was the most positive thing about this episode for me...

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rr2911

rr2911

I like JDM and his character Negan.  But I don't know about the show.  Like everyone else here I thought it was going to be like TAR.  This show seems like it's going to be relationship driven.  It was a bit complicated as to what the coins were.

There is a reason that Survivor and TAR have lasted so long.  The rules are simple in each of these shows.  

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proserpina65

proserpina65

I may give this a second shot, but based on the first episode, this was way too Big Brother-ish backstabbing and not nearly enough about the tasks and the destination.

I will brag about recognizing the cathedral in Orvieto, though.

On 5/28/2025 at 11:50 AM, iMonrey said:

Yeah. They made it way too obvious it was Rome, and the challenge part with the coins made zero sense. 

I wasn't 100% sure it was Rome.  Florence did cross my mind, although I'd probably have gone with Rome.  But I sure as hell knew it wasn't Milan.  Thrilled that Josh picked Milan and got eliminated, though.

On 5/28/2025 at 8:16 PM, KeithJ said:

I have to agree.  These people are all awful.  At least Josh went first.  I’ll keep watching but not really rooting for anyone. I’m curious though how you can be a lawyer and flight attendant.  You definitely can’t be doing those 50/50.

You can do one and then the other, but I can't imagine doing them concurrently.  You'd need to be in the same state consistently to be a lawyer.

26 minutes ago, rr2911 said:

I like JDM and his character Negan.

I've disliked him ever since Dead Denny on Grey's Anatomy.  He's definitely a negative for me.

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DEL901

DEL901

Josh has zero strategic capabilities.  If you think that people are split between two locations (Milan and Rome) and at least one person will pick each, then you can place your guess between the two and be sure of being safe.

And agree that it is hard to find someone to root for.  That older woman (can’t remember her age but she said she was the oldest, IIRC) with the red hair and bad plastic surgery came across even dimmer than Josh, and that’s saying a lot.  

With regard to the Big Brotherness… at least in Big Brother you can usually find some space if you want to be alone for a bit.  Not on this show.  Tensions are going to ratchet up quickly.

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Ilovepie

Ilovepie

These people are beyond annoying and the whole thing feels pointless. This episode they didn't really get to see or experience the location. Most of them only saw the inside of a well. Why even bother leaving the states if you just wear VR goggles and ride a bus? They could play the same games in a warehouse and not even leave the building. I hate shows like this. I'm giving it one more episode, but that's it. 

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rr2911

rr2911

I don't like shows that it seems the main point to the show is to have a potential romance or made up drama.  This show has the ingredients!

There are a couple of attractive women, the brunette that won the first clue and the one opposite of Josh in the final.  I'll probably root for one of them.

Why did the older guy do that pissed Josh off.  I must have missed something.

They should've taken a page from TAR and cast regulat people that want to compete and win.  They cast or hand picked people that will create drama.

 

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Irlandesa

Irlandesa

13 hours ago, peachmangosteen said:

He told Josh his team was thinking it was Milan, which was seemingly actually true and not that guy trying to mess with Josh. 

Exactly.  He thought Rick was playing him.  What he didn't realize is that team really did think it was Milan. The only reason he got booted over the person from the other team is because that person was torn between Milan and Verona (or some other city) and she split the difference.  Had Josh split the difference between Milan and Rome and gone half way, it's very likely he would have stayed.

I was looking forward to this show but I think I have to force myself to give it up.  I can respect Mack's cleverness but I fear she kicked off a game where everyone will form alliances and possibly try and backstab. 

I don't like that the windows are closed off.  I suspect we'll be spending a lot of time on the bus if that's where all the interpersonal stuff takes place.  That means fewer views of the scenery.  And I would never be able to do this. I get motion sick in the best of circumstances.  Being completely shut off from the scenery would be so much worse.

I also don't like how vague the clues are.  Yes, there was enough for us to know that we were in Italy but the clues that it was Rome were so hidden.  I would have liked more things the at home audience could play with in terms of clues.

It's a shame because I actually loved the first challenge where the people in the well had to solve a riddle to release their player and the players had to solve a riddle to go where they needed to look. 

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Diana Berry

Diana Berry

On 5/30/2025 at 8:11 PM, rr2911 said:

I don't like shows that it seems the main point to the show is to have a potential romance or made up drama.  This show has the ingredients!

There are a couple of attractive women, the brunette that won the first clue and the one opposite of Josh in the final.  I'll probably root for one of them.

Why did the older guy do that pissed Josh off.  I must have missed something.

They should've taken a page from TAR and cast regulat people that want to compete and win.  They cast or hand picked people that will create drama.

 

He told him he thought it was Milan right before he went in the room. 

Can’t  they figure out how long they are in the bus in relation to where they are?  How do they get their food on these long trips ?

 

 

iMonrey

iMonrey

I think it's suspicious this is a brand new show nobody has ever seen or played and they all showed up on Day 1 ready to backstab, scheme and make alliances. Clearly it's what the show is going for, which is a real shame given the potential of its premise. Whoever's in charge seems to think the worst of reality TV is the best of reality TV. They could have just called this show "The Bus" and spared the travel expenses.

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DEL901

DEL901

1 hour ago, iMonrey said:

I think it's suspicious this is a brand new show nobody has ever seen or played and they all showed up on Day 1 ready to backstab, scheme and make alliances. Clearly it's what the show is going for, which is a real shame given the potential of its premise. Whoever's in charge seems to think the worst of reality TV is the best of reality TV. They could have just called this show "The Bus" and spared the travel expenses.

I understand the show isn’t original and is based on a show in Belgium.

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bunnyface

bunnyface

21 hours ago, iMonrey said:

I think it's suspicious this is a brand new show nobody has ever seen or played and they all showed up on Day 1 ready to backstab, scheme and make alliances. Clearly it's what the show is going for, which is a real shame given the potential of its premise. Whoever's in charge seems to think the worst of reality TV is the best of reality TV. They could have just called this show "The Bus" and spared the travel expenses.

I figure it's a combination of things.  Maybe the producers told them to amp up the drama.  But I think all competition programs are going to go like this from now on.  They've seen other shows, they've seen alliances work, they want to win "at all costs."  Most of the people on these shows now, Survivor has been on *their whole lives*.  They've seen this kind of gamesmanship their whole lives.  The GBBO is a rare show where the contestants get along and help each other.  Most other shows are going to be like this, a win at all costs competition for a lot of money.  And if they amp it up enough, maybe they have a shot at something else down the line.  Several reality show competitors have gone on to other entertainment jobs, so if that is what someone is looking for, it's best to put on a good show.

 

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iMonrey

iMonrey

No thread for Episode 2 yet . . .

I can see why this is a summer show. The network must have known they had a real turkey on their hands, and the only time anyone would watch it is when nothing else was on.

It feels like the producers don't know what they're doing and just throwing in random things they think a competition show should have without explaining them. That first challenge made zero sense. They never explained how the players got divided into three groups. They all had to dig up three clue boxes but the clue boxes told them whether or not they were right so what was the point? And then to take three of them up in a helicopter and show them a Swiss flag. Shouldn't that have been the end of it?

What is the point of forming alliances in this game? There are only nine people. I fail to see how any kind of alliance benefits anyone. There isn't any real way to conspire to knock out someone else. That's not how it works.

Nobody trusts Rick because Josh told them not to. Josh. I guess none of them watched Big Brother or they'd know that Josh is stupid. 

I'm about ready for Negan to pull out Lucille and bash a few heads in.

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bunnyface

bunnyface

15 hours ago, KeithJ said:

I’ll keep watching but I hate it when shows add new players after the game has already started.

Yes, I don't understand the point of that.  Especially people from other shows that the other players immediately recognized.  Why?  Do they think they are going to be so star struck it'll rattle them and throw off their game?  Because so far, it seems kind of easy.  They've pretty much all figured out where they are easily, except for two doofuses. 

Lovecat

Lovecat

1 hour ago, proserpina65 said:

I didn't get how that was supposed to lead them to Geneva at all.  Does the Morgan person play in Geneva or something?

Apparently it was a Lakers jersey, so "Lake" + "Jen" + "Eva" = Lake Geneva.

I knew they were headed for Geneva from the show's intro, when Jeffrey said something about "the capital of peace."  The players are not privy to his post-production voiceovers, though, so while there were ABUNDANT in-game clues pointing to Switzerland (even without a peek at the Swiss flag), the Lake Geneva clues were a bit more subtle.  Who knew the Rolex company was based in Geneva?  I wouldn't have gotten it from the fountain on the bell, either, like Mack did.  The atomic symbol pointed toward the Large Hadron Collider at CERN...but I don't actually know where CERN is (Google tells me it's outside of Geneva).  It's hard for me to predict whether I'd have figured things out had I been in the same position the players are.  Wasn't  there a bell with a dove on it?  That might've given it to me.  I'd for sure have been less clueless than poor, sweet, dim Josiah, though! 

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bunnyface

bunnyface

20 minutes ago, Lovecat said:

Apparently it was a Lakers jersey, so "Lake" + "Jen" + "Eva" = Lake Geneva.

I knew they were headed for Geneva from the show's intro, when Jeffrey said something about "the capital of peace."  The players are not privy to his post-production voiceovers, though, so while there were ABUNDANT in-game clues pointing to Switzerland (even without a peek at the Swiss flag), the Lake Geneva clues were a bit more subtle.  Who knew the Rolex company was based in Geneva?  I wouldn't have gotten it from the fountain on the bell, either, like Mack did.  The atomic symbol pointed toward the Large Hadron Collider at CERN...but I don't actually know where CERN is (Google tells me it's outside of Geneva).  It's hard for me to predict whether I'd have figured things out had I been in the same position the players are.  Wasn't  there a bell with a dove on it?  That might've given it to me.  I'd for sure have been less clueless than poor, sweet, dim Josiah, though! 

All of that is true.  I could see the mountains and the chalet, so I automatically thought Switzerland.  They saw the Swiss flag and from there the only ones I could come up with from the top of my head were Zurich and Geneva.  Despite YEARS of watching TAR.  The fountain on the bell?  I thought it looked like a flag in a golf hole.  Hopefully they got a better look at than I did.  So while it wouldn't have been a slam dunk, I could have gotten in the area.  So they are all really smarter than me (not difficult) or they are seeing things and getting clues we aren't because they are all pretty much on the money UNTIL they psych themselves out.  

We saw them walk in and out of the chalet.  I wonder how much time they had to look around?  I wouldn't have seen the Rolex because I would have spent time trying not to look directly at JDM.  Because I lurve him but I also lurve his wife and wouldn't want to upset her, so JDM and I can never be.  Because that's obviously the only thing keeping us apart, my respect for his wife.

I also want to know how they get them off the bus and into places (a well!).  Because walking around blindfolded is one of my worst nightmares.  I would be falling and crashing and making a total mess of things.  In PT they wanted me to walk with my eyes closed to improve my balance and I nearly freaked.  Plus changing into mountain gear has to be clue also.  There's a lot we don't see.

Tdoc72

Tdoc72

I thought Switzerland at first b/c he said something in the voiceover about time or clocks. I’d like to think I would’ve gotten the Jen Eva clues but Geneva and Bern were the biggest Swiss cities I could think of. 
 

I didn’t understand Kim wanting Jonah off.  If you think he’s not very good/smart, wouldn’t you have less competition keeping him in the game?  Maybe I just liked him; he seemed like a nice guy. 

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peachmangosteen

peachmangosteen

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(edited)
On 6/4/2025 at 6:27 PM, KeithJ said:

I’ll keep watching but I hate it when shows add new players after the game has already started.

I am assuming they won't actually enter the game to play but just be some kind of twist because it's so odd and dumb for them to be coming in now to play. But this show is odd and dumb so yea they probably are coming on to play.

Edited by peachmangosteen
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seacliffsal

seacliffsal

My mind boggles over the fact that none of them seem to be getting 'bus sick.'  I've been on buses going through Switzerland and the Alps and I would really have to work on not getting 'bus' sick.  Those curving roads are nothing to sneeze at.  I would never be able to doo it without being able to look ahead.  The bus they are on is so enclosed it's claustrophobic to a degree.  Would they even needs clues to realize they are somewhere in the Alps with all the altitude changes and curving roads?

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DEL901

DEL901

12 minutes ago, seacliffsal said:

My mind boggles over the fact that none of them seem to be getting 'bus sick.'  I've been on buses going through Switzerland and the Alps and I would really have to work on not getting 'bus' sick.  Those curving roads are nothing to sneeze at.  I would never be able to doo it without being able to look ahead.  The bus they are on is so enclosed it's claustrophobic to a degree.  Would they even needs clues to realize they are somewhere in the Alps with all the altitude changes and curving roads?

In an interview, Josh talked about how uncomfortable it all way, especially the sleeping quarters for a tall guy like him.  Apparently he had a melt down.   So I imagine there’s a lot they aren’t showing us, if it doesn’t fit the narrative.

iMonrey

iMonrey

13 hours ago, mertensia said:

Also, just like in Big Brother no one stops to think if someone at the bottom of the hierarchy gets real info, they're going to try and find an ally they can spill it to. 

Even the confessionals look very Big Brother, don't they? A small, enclosed space where they sit in a big chair and talk to the camera. Very Diary Room.

KittyQ

KittyQ

I would never have figured out the "Lakers" clue. I don't follow sports, so I wouldn't be able to tell if it was a professional jersey or JDM's high school. I thought the Jennifer Aniston and Eva Longoria pictures were odd to have in the chalet, but I doubt I would have put together their first names, and forget knowing what kind of watch JDM was wearing! It could have been a Swatch for all I know. Plus he was moving his hands around, so it would be hard to get a good look at it. 

Clearly, there are lots of things cut out that we never see, like how the players are maneuvered out of the bus and to whatever location, although they seem to want to make it seem as though they somehow teleported them there. I'd also love to know how the players are handling the daily dressing up on the bus. What kind of rest room does that bus have? The woman with the elaborate hair and makeup has to be taking up a lot of time there! 

I figured out it was Geneva from the first voice over, and the rest of the clues just confirmed it (once I figured them out). One thing came out of it for me - I may have to reread "Frankenstein" because I forgot where it was set. For some reason, I, like many others, thought it was set in Germany, but maybe that's because I thought that was where the movie had it set. I could be wrong about that, too. 

This is no TAR, for sure, and JDM lacks Phil's smoothness and overall likeability. He should enjoy this little side trip and return to his full-time job, IMO.

snarts

snarts

Another show with good  potential ruined by forcing/encouraging alliances & backstabbing (another recent example, The Summit) This show would be so unique & interesting were it structured & administered as an individual competition.

In essence, it is. Only one person wins the $250k. But the challenges force teams & voting which in turn causes the alliances & backstabbing.

Anyone watch the very first season of The Mole with Anderson Cooper? At the end of each challenge all the competitors took a test,with one of the questions being "who is the mole?" The person who had least correct answers each episide was sent home, until there was only one winner. The set-up encouraged individual game play, it didnt behoove you to share info. Really wish this show had been set-up similarly. 

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