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Archive => RFF Archived Boards => The Amazing Race 30 => Topic started by: georgiapeach on January 10, 2018, 05:55:08 AM
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:conf: Happy TAR DAY!!! :conf:
IMPORTANT! Even though we are a spoiler board, we do NOT want to have the episode spoiled while it is airing.
SO PLEASE ** NO OUTCOMES ** to be posted before the show is done airing East Coast time!
And to protect the unspoiled, NO FUTURE SPOILERS EVER!
Anyone breaking these rules is at BIG risk. :browsie:
Otherwise, come watch with us for the best weekly viewing party in town!! :party:
We will have a LIVE streaming video posted every week we can find one. So if you are overseas or just on the West Coast and want to watch right away...please join us! You can follow along and PLEASE help update as the show unfolds! We hope everyone will join in the fun!! :wohoo:
LIVE STREAMING VIDEO links will be HERE (http://forum.realityfanforum.com/index.php/topic,33982.0.html) and will normally be put up about 20-30 minutes before show time.
And you can entertain yourself with the weekly episode threads as well while you wait! **Spoilers**
Have FUN everyone and :tu for joining us!!
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Updater needed for tonight!
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Updater needed for tonight!
As long ss my stream works, I'm all for it!
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Luckily, I got back from work early today so I will be able to update along with Bourkie. I am cooking some bacon and cheese waffles and french fries for the occasion tonight as well.
:jumpy:
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Thanks guys! Save me some FRITES!! :waves:
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Posting welcomed after 740PM!
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Luckily, I got back from work early today so I will be able to update along with Bourkie. I am cooking some bacon and cheese waffles and french fries for the occasion tonight as well.
:jumpy:
I'll leave it to you Rachel! If you need me, just call me! :)
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Let's have some FUN! :yess:
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One minute out.
Tasks look interesting & curious to see how they'll adapt the Face Off.
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Can't wait to see the US's first take on the Face Off!
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:cmas26 And we are on the air! :cmas26
Previously on TAR, 11 teams of the "best" at what they do began the race in Washington Square Park with a splash. They traveled into Iceland where goat yoga got off to a rocky start while others were steady. Team Big Brother soared through the RB and Cedric & Shawn called foul and received a penalty. Kristi & Jen took home the gold while Slam Dunk were saved by an intense inch-long foot race. The Ring Girls were unfortunately eliminated.
10 teams remain, who will be eliminated NEXT?! :o
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And we begin with Kristi puking!...... It's no walk in the park especially the "Black Death" drink. Competitors must rise to the occasion. 5 minutes later, Kristi was good as new.
They depart at 1st at 8:08 AM to Antwerp, Belgium via Amsterdam. They must travel to a downtown chocolatier in Antwerp to receive their next clue from Stan!
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Cody & Jessica depart 2nd, $202 for this leg of the race. They talk about BB life and TAR journeying.
Hennry & Evan depart 3rd and are confident in their abilities. They talk about Yale debate life and they are a team to be reckoned with.
The skiiers meet up with Trevor & Chris who departed 4th. They talk about band life.
Cedric & Shawn, Eric & Daniel, Joey & Tim, and Alex & Conor are at the airport to get tickets.
Lucas & Brittany and April & Sarah are shown boarding. The goat yoga moms are starting a brand new day.
Cedric & Shawn talk about their penalty and 'balling.
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"We've got to go all in, no bars, baby" - Shawn
*INTRO*
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Recap, Cold Open, then Intro...That's new.
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And after that weirdly placed commercial break, we return with teams landing in Amsterdam! Welkom!
And we magically get to the chocolatier with no scramble in Amsterdam.
ROADBLOCK!: Who's ready to get high?
One team member must do the SkyClimb. They must climb to the top of the structure with a ladder that scrolls in to grab their next clue. First come, first serve.
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And after that weirdly placed commercial break, we return with teams landing in Amsterdam! Welkom!
And we magically get to the chocolatier with no scramble in Amsterdam.
ROADBLOCK!: Who's ready to get high?
One team member must do the SkyClimb. They must climb to the top of the structure with a ladder that scrolls in to grab their next clue. First come, first serve.
They're in Antwerp, not Amsterdam.
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Cedric & Shawn and the orchestra guys are 1st and 2nd to the site. Cody & Jessica, Tim & Joey, and Henry & Evan are 3rd, 4th, and 5th.
The girl teams are lost.
Meanwhile, the first four teams are climbing to the top. Cedric & Shawn's clue fell! lol And Trevor & Chris get their clue. And Tim & Joey's also fall while Cody & Jess grab theirs.
DETOUR:
In Old Print, teams must use a printing press to try to print their clue. In Diamond Glint, teams must appraise a diamond and calculate the worth on the already existing diamond necklace, add them up correctly, to receive their next clue.
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And teams are lost and without taxis. Controlled pandemonium at its finest!
Commercials
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This leg is really good already.
Many teams getting lost, penalties foreshadowed (I hope) :cmas27
Recap, Cold Open, then Intro...That's new.
I found that cool though! Didn't feel out of place at all and I liked that they gave so much focus to the teams. It's nice to see after a rushed premiere episode!
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And after that weirdly placed commercial break, we return with teams landing in Amsterdam! Welkom!
And we magically get to the chocolatier with no scramble in Amsterdam.
ROADBLOCK!: Who's ready to get high?
One team member must do the SkyClimb. They must climb to the top of the structure with a ladder that scrolls in to grab their next clue. First come, first serve.
They're in Antwerp, not Amsterdam.
They flew to Amst and took the train there
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We return with Alex & Conor grabbing a taxi to the SkyClimb. The driver simply tells them to walk there.
April & Sarah and Lucas & Britt are 6th and 7th while Kristi & Jen grab 8th. The Indy drivers and firefighters are 9th and last.
They are in a crazy ladder dash for their clues!!!!
They proceed to their Detour with Kristi & Jen move up to 5th with other teams tracking behind.
Cody & Jess arrive at the printing presses and start grabbing letters. They notice the letters are upside down and in reverse for the print to be effective.
Meanwhile the boys are catching up and splitting up with Detours.
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Lucas & Brittany reveals "pineapple" is their safe word to calm down and get it together. Should've been the title quote.
Henry & Evan and Kristi & Jen arrive at the presses. Kristi & Jen are smart however and use the window to cast a shadow to see the letters upright.
The other teams catch up to the diamonds (Tim & Joey) to appraise the diamond. They grade and appraise the diamonds following the sheet provided for them to determine the value of the crystal. Conor only used the microscope once in 8th grade looking at organisms.
On the other side, Cody & jessica get all their letters and the judge determines their work lifted too high for the press.
April & Sarah say "diamonds are a girl's best friend". Tim says this is a very difficult task in itself that deductions can vary and be interpretive.
Cedric & Shawn get their message incorrectly and must go back to the workshop.
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Lucas & Britt arrive while Henry & Evan and Kristi & Jen are forming words alongside. Cedric & Shawn go back to see that the words are all CORRECT! They can read their own clue. The clue reveals they must go to a statue.... okay, what statue???
Trevor & Chris think they have the answer and the appraisal team says they are wrong. Teams struggling to pinpoint the diamond crystals worth.
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Kristi & jen zoom up to 2nd and a local tells them the clue refers to French fries.
Cedric & Shawn arrive 1st and meet the first HEAD-2-HEAD!!!!! A member must complete an obstacle course around the plaza and combines the Intersection with the Pit Stop! Last team to not complete this task will be eliminated! damn.....
Henry & Evan get their clue in 4th. Lucas & Brittany decide to use their mirror to see the letters upright. Eric & Daniel spins their word print. Kristi & jen on their way to the plaza.
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Cedric & Shawn VS Cody & Jessica for 1st place
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AND Cody completes the course effortlessly while Cedric is a hot mess on the course.
Cody & Jessica win $2,500 each.
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Cedric & Shawn are sitting and waiting for the next team. Meanwhile at the jewelry office, Trevor & Chris finish the appraisal and get their next clue! At the printing press, Lucas & Britt, even with the mirror, get the print wrong. Eric & Daniel switch Detours even after printing the words on Eric's arm. It's do or die for them now!
Commercials.
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Don't like the cheesy editing of the head-to-head race. :/
And why didn't they call it face-off? That's a much better name, and they could've even created a clue icon for it. Now it was just a route marker.
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Don't like the cheesy editing of the head-to-head race. :/
And why didn't they call it face-off? That's a much better name, and they could've even created a clue icon for it. Now it was just a route marker.
I feel like this should've been called "stop n' go" referencing the ramp metering lights, but oh well.
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We come back as Cedric & Shawn VS Hnery & Evan!
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And Shawn finishes while Henry is now an even hotter mess than Cedric with the wheelbarrow race.
Cedric & Shawn are 2nd!
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Henry & Evan VS Kristi & Jen (Evan vs Kristi)
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Evan runs into barriers while Kristi runs slow and steady. Phil commentates like it's a college football game and it's quickly annoying me....
Kristi finishes and her & Jen are 3rd!
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Not a fan of the placement of this task.
China 4 had a season full of face-off that were much more interesting, and better placed within the different legs.
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Henry & Evan VS Trevor & Chris (Henry vs Chris)
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Chris rams into Henry to slow him down and Henry has lost his frites and starts to slow down even worse. More fatigued than before. Chris finishes this course and check in with Trevor in 4TH.
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Phil's commentary over the frites race is so annoying. :groan:
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Eric & Daniel running to the diamond office while April accidentlly drops the $20,000 diamond... oh geez.
Conor & Alex move up to 6th after surprisingly finish. Meanwhile, Tim & Joey are right behind them, leaving the goat yoga moms behind.
Lucas & Brittany get 8th place after finally getting their printing press correct.
April & Sarah were about to give up, but the TWINS CAME and renewed their energy. C'mon April & Sarah and Eric & Daniel!
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Henry & Evan VS Alex & Conor with a distinct Indy driving experience to help them out with steering and control. Alex has a steering advantage while Evan has run the course prior. Alex jets ahead while Evan lags behind and crash, they're done... Alex swerves around with a 100 foot lead and finishes the course.
Alex & Conor are 5TH PLACE.
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And now Lucas & Brittany VS Henry & Evan! Brittany in the cheering section rooting for her boyfriend. The two are neck-and-neck while Lucas slips past Henry who loses a bag of frites. Henry is exhausted and out of breath... what a major downfall. And Lucas finishes!
Lucas & Brittany are 6TH PLACE! Brittany is crying with joy and also feeling sympathetic for Henry & Evan's 5 consecutive losses in a row with this first stop n go task after Phil brings it up. Evan & Henry are tired and desperate to win one wave any time now.... :(
Commercials.
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#FYI you can always sit out a race to rest and wait for a weaker team ... but at the end of the day the earlier you get there the more options you have #Frite race #AmazingRace @BelgiumMFA
Interesting information about the new race mechanic from Phil via Twitter.
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And now, those of you who only know the US version, you are seeing why I never overly cared for this type of route marker in the other versions :(
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We come back with Henry & Evan VS Tim & Joey!
Tim is out of control while Evan is steadily barrowing. Is that even a word?? Anyway, Tim is rushing ahead but Henry & Evan are damn exhausted. Tim takes home the win.
Joey & Tim takes 7TH PLACE.
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Eric & Dan and April & Sarah are still struggling through the diamond appraisal Detour. And April & Sarah get their CLUE!! They are now in 9th and glad they are not last.
Eric & Daniel catches up and rushes out of there.
Now it's April & Sarah VS Henry & Evan!
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Henry is competing against April. Henry decides to cut off April's options to jump ahead to help them survive and..... he fell at the finish line..... AND THEY DID IT!!!! Wooohooooo!!!!
Henry & Evan are 8TH PLACE after 7 stop n gos. Evan describes this was a matter of just winning once.
Meanwhile, the firefighters are here.
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And now it's a race for last place... April & Sarah VS Eric & Daniel... do or die... all or nothing!
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April and Dan are racing each other. April has a lead and utilizing Henry's strategy. And Daniel twisted up April's cart to allow him to take the lead........ They both cross the ramp, and the firefighters make it across.
Eric & Daniel are 9TH PLACE while April & Sarah are last... Team Goat Yoga is eliminated from the race.
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The goat yoga moms end on a very sweet note and love the experience they had despite finishing off the leg in a very heartbreaking way.
End credits.
STAY TUNED FOR SCENES FROM OUR NEXT EPISODE
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Next week on TAR! Teams head to Morocco where Jessica makes a strategic move to put behind Lucas & Brittany. Meanwhie, Cedric & Shawn are at odds with... themselves. "You've got to drag me out of here, Phil!"
End credits. So how did everyone like tonight's episode?
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Weird leg. Less exciting than expected. I would've swapped the placements of (ugh) head-to-head ARI with the RB, having them actually have to navigate the streets to find Phil, instead of just having him standing there. The US version of the Face-Off, turned out a lot less eventful, that I thought it could be.
Still not into the "most competitive season" narrative, they been trying to sell.
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I really enjoyed the episode. The only team that has mildly annoyed me is now gone. I can't say that I dislike any of the teams. I do believe this is a good cast!
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Why did the Face-Off Head 2 Head? Gods sake KEEP THE SAME WORD!!!
This episode was MUCH better than the premier. 4/5
Anyway, sad that 2 FF are out already... :cmas4 :cmas4
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This face-off seemed much better on paper.
Didn't like it, wish it wasn't there.
Even moreso wish Phil wasn't so desperate about having more air time.
The FFEMTs are the most boring team this season and them getting saved by it is frustrating.
Also surprised at the lack of penalties for teams that lost their clue at the RB and Lucas & Brittany for using a mirror (or is that allowed?).
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Next week on TAR! Teams head to Morocco where Jessica makes a strategic move to put behind Lucas & Brittany. Meanwhie, Cedric & Shawn are at odds with... themselves. "You've got to drag me out of here, Phil!"
End credits. So how did everyone like tonight's episode?
I liked it. Just wish the face-off didn't directly determine who was eliminated. I'm more of a fan of the other formats where the last team just gets a time penalty. Other than that, I didn't mind the face-off. The other tasks were also pretty cool.
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The problem with the "Stop n go" isn't the concept itself. Phil being centrally involved in this entire process from narrating what was going on was just irritating to initiating the last wave was dragging this down. I watch too much live sports to hear narration of what's going on in the arena and know that outside narration is just super annoying. Had the racers themselves said what their problems were, how they were feeling, and what they were doing to win their wave(s), I think this would have been a very intriguing race element. Especially since this is a brand new one.
It reminds me of season 15's wasabi bomb Roadblock for starters and that's good!
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Yeah, this didn't change my view on it at all. At least when the other versions do it, there's always at least one more task after it to still allow placement shift.
To make the Pit Stop rely on it is kinda crappy and unfair :(
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Oh what a task you reminded me of, Rachel!
And that looked like a face-off, too, only with an element of randomness in it.
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Watch the ratings fall starting in the third episode due to the Head-to-Head
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THANK YOU RACHEL!!
AWESOME UPDATE!!
:tu :tu :tu
And so do the 27 Members and 226 Guests who are viewing this board!
GUESTS! :welcome: but Wouldn't you have more fun if you could comment? Become a member today!
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THANK YOU RACHEL!!
AWESOME UPDATE!!
:tu :tu :tu
And so do the 27 Members and 226 Guests who are viewing this board!
GUESTS! :welcome: but Wouldn't you have more fun if you could comment? Become a member today!
Thank you! And the waffles & fries I made today turned out fantastic! Just to celebrate them visiting a Belgian chocolatier, I'm eating a Godiva bar right now. :)
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This episode was better than the premiere. Now to start on what i think about this week's episode. The return of Belgium was nice. The roadblock looked challenging, but teams completed it quickly. The first detour looked a bit on the medium side side on the difficulty scale, if you know how a printing press works you can complete that one easily, if you are an expert at looking closely to detail and math, then the diamond one is it. The "Head-to-Head" should have been placed better. I did like the design of it, but it shouldn't have been the deciding factor that gets a team eliminated, it's unfair. The "Head-to-Head" should have been placed at the beginning of the leg instead.
Overall, I would rate this episode 4/5 for great tasks was better edited than the premiere. The only downside was the "Head-to-Head' placement.
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The actual task was better than all the sports Face Offs on TAR Canada. But making it the deciding factor in elimination and placing it right at the Pit Stop is absurd. There have been poor Double Battles/Face Offs/Duels before, but the way it was used here was the worst I've seen.
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As plenty have said, that was not a good place for the head-to-head. At least the detours were really cool
Edit: I found it interesting they aired one of the twins saying that Goat Yoga was the better team today as they beat them at the detour. I wonder if this was included as the editors and/or producers dislike or have regret for how they structured the task?
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Goat Yoga would have been an awesome underdog team to root for, so possibly.
There are a lot of comments on Facebook on how one of the twins played dirty by hitting April on the course, too.
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I’m still digesting the episode, especially the Head to Head. I haven’t seen any of the international version, much less their versions of this kind of task, so it’s totally new to me. But it was a way to get Phil more visibly active on screen during the episode, which I think is in part prompted by how the Emmys have not given as much credit in that host category as we may believe is warranted.
I’ll try to comment further after I sleep on it and rewatch in the next couple of days.
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The actual task was better than all the sports Face Offs on TAR Canada. But making it the deciding factor in elimination and placing it right at the Pit Stop is absurd. There have been poor Double Battles/Face Offs/Duels before, but the way it was used here was the worst I've seen.
Totally agree. There should always be another chance after a face off. You can have a penalty but never should it be the Elimination decision. UGH UGH UGH. :groan:
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I mean, on TARPH2. The worst Duel was on the first Leg where teams raced in a 100 meter sprint. Certainly unfair to less fit teams. But there was a Detour and a whole costumed dance performance before the Pit Stop still. The losing team from the Duel actually beat two other teams at that last task and were eliminated because Manila's streets turned into rivers that night from a big storm and they didn't hop out of their taxis soon enough to continue on foot. That's certainly much more "competitive" and exciting. This execution of the Head-to-Head was just... :cmas30:
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Not a big fan of the episode. The head to head challenge took up at least half of it. I wasn't a fan of the concept, and would rather have seen more of Belgium. That said, the detours were good, even if a bit unexciting to watch.
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The detour was good, didn't seem easy. That was really the highlight for me. The head to head seemed to mean only the two physically weakest teams were in danger of getting eliminated and it wasn't that hard to predict most of the results.
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Not a big fan of the episode. The head to head challenge took up at least half of it. I wasn't a fan of the concept, and would rather have seen more of Belgium. That said, the detours were good, even if a bit unexciting to watch.
same do I hate this twist :cmas11 I hate this ever since it's implementation in international versions :cmas11
I don't get it. Why would the progress of my team being slowed down because I have to wait for another team to compete with? :cmas11
The twist is even worse when it is the last task of the leg and the sole determining factor of elimination :cmas31:
I just hope that the next time we have it on the race, it will be the first task of the leg rather than the middle, not to mention being the last task :cmas11
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I was just checking the Live sightings threat and realized we had a photo of the last race, firefighters vs. Yoga all along.
This is the exact moment team Goat Yoga was eliminated... :(
Found this!
(http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb140/ga--peach/TAR%2030/Antwerp%20Belgium/martajarsia.jpg)
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Episode 2
Overall, this episode was better than the premiere. Editing did't feel as rushed. We saw all the teams complete their tasks. Also, we had an interesting array of tasks in a pretty full leg.
Prior to this season, I had always been skeptical of TAR bringing over the Double Battle/Face Off.
I know it sounds cruel, but I loved seeing teams lost in Belgium.
Pineapple :cmaslol
April nearly losing $20,000 :cmaslol
Random Macarena :cmaslol
Greeter being kind of impressed :cmaslol
Roadblock: The Roadblock was straight forward and quick. I can deal with that though considering how full this leg was.
Detour: The Detour in general was pretty good.
Print: There were so many small details and menial work. I liked that a simple mistake could result in teams starting over.
Diamond: The task reminded me of a combination of the gold task from TAR 15 & the alcohol task from TARC 2. There were also a lot of details and a single mistake would be detrimental.
Head-to-Head: Not the biggest fan of the name probably because I'm used to the term Face Off. To talk about just the task itself. It was ridiculous and very HaMerotz, and I loved that. The task didn't necessarily favor fast teams as going too fast resulted in a loss of control. Teams that won did so by implementing a proper technique, so the task itself I liked.
Now, to talk about the placement. Phil hinted that we might see more Head-to-Heads. I hope that the Pit Stop placement was just to introduce the task and going forward we see it in the middle of the leg. I'll forgive it this time since the task wasn't 100% physical, but if we see more final task Head-to-Heads I might get annoyed.
4/5
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It's funny how Bertram and Elise criticized the Intersection because it forces teams to wait for another team. Yet they bring the Head to Head over and make it the deciding task of the Leg. lol
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It's funny how Bertram and Elise criticized the Intersection because it forces teams to wait for another team. Yet they bring the Head to Head over and make it the deciding task of the Leg. lol
I was thinking that, too. I remember that article.
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Especially since April had to wait THREE hours for the Firefighters to arrive. Just hate it being a final task, there should always be something else after it. Sigh.
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3 hours? Now that is absurd!
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Yeah, this made me realise that the Intersection isn't a good twist either, although I liked it before.
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It's funny how Bertram and Elise criticized the Intersection because it forces teams to wait for another team. Yet they bring the Head to Head over and make it the deciding task of the Leg. lol
I was thinking that, too. I remember that article.
I’m wondering if the decision to use it notwithstanding the fault in the intersection was because order and time spacing of each team check in and release is essentially neutralized the way the teams travel now or reach a HOO immediately thereafter. This phenomenon has been noted for years, but this has become so pervasive, that it appears production is justifying use of the Head to Head because the times of check-in are becoming irrelevant.
One thing that did surprise me was the clip in the beginning of the leg where Cody tells us how much money teams have for this leg. It’s been a while since we’ve seen that!
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Especially since April had to wait THREE hours for the Firefighters to arrive. Just hate it being a final task, there should always be something else after it. Sigh.
That is awful. I haven't seen that. Can you share where you heard that? Thanks.
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Hi there
After a few months of lurking on here I finally made an account lol. I was in Washington Square for the start of the race and was so curious what happened afterwards that I stumbled upon here. I had a great time tracking the teams through you guys and thank you all for all your sleuthing!
Anyways, I was so excited for this season to air (especially given all the updates) and because since witnessing the race start, I've been binge-watching some old seasons I had missed. But I'm a little disappointed with the episodes. I feel like the editing is so off this season, more so in episode 1. I'm disappointed that the ring girls were eliminated in such a close race and I hated the face-off as being the sole determinant of elimination too. I also feel like certain teams aren't getting adequate airtime (ocean rescue, well strung). I am surprised by how much I like a few teams though (skiers, debaters).
Still excited to watch this season unfold though! And thanks to you all for entertaining me these past few months!
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Also did anyone else notice that Phil is no longer in the opening theme song?
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Also did anyone else notice that Phil is no longer in the opening theme song?
I can't remember if I noticed that. ???
Also, :hello2: and :wel2 to RFF, tiger17!
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Destination: Antwerp, Belgium
The city of Antwerp has never been visited by TAR prior to this season. After all, this is the second time TAR is visiting Belgium. It's just like Iceland who got a second visit last leg. What I find interesting with this visit is that there are ten teams racing on this season's Belgian leg, twice the number of teams who raced the leg during the first Belgian visit.
Culture:
I had to do some research for this. Gotta say that I really like the involvement of chocolate, frites, diamonds, and the old printing with this Belgian leg. French fries originating from France is a big misconception, because of its name. I like how the episode enlightens the origin of this potato delicacy. Antwerp being the diamond capital of the world makes the appearance of diamonds quite significant. The museum where they had the printing task is actually a UNESCO World Heritage site. I like the amount of history and culture involved in their visit in Antwerp.
Roadblock:
I honestly can't connect how it is relevant to Belgium. It's nice to have an extreme task, a heights task too. It's not about the view this time. It's just for fun. I think the task isn't too linear, because someone mentioned that there's a time limit for climbing the ladder. Nobody had to redo the task though, so it seemed linear for four teams at a time. It was at the start of the leg though, and several teams had navigation issues to and from the task, so at least that shuffled some placements. The falling clues seemed problematic to me. Maybe it's the wind. Maybe they could've stuck the clue better. Not sure, but it looked bad on TV. From a viewer's point of view, the task felt lackluster. It is most likely harder than it looks though. It's just the second leg anyway, so I think its difficulty is meant to be this way. For me, it felt like a task that was just out there. The navigation issues teams encountered shuffled the placements at least. I think last leg's roadblock was better than this leg's.
Detour: Old Printing
I like how a UNESCO World Heritage is visited for the task. The attention to detail is somewhat necessary, but the real challenge for the task is how the letters were flipped, since Jessica mentioned that the stamps were upside down and in reverse. Some teams were smart enough to find ways to see the flipped text better, like what the skiers did with the paper provided and what the lifeguards did with a reflective tool. That makes the task slightly easier, since it would just be following something that is given by then. Some teams like NBA and the twins struggling with the flipped letters made the task still have a decent amount of difficulty. It's not too easy yet it's not too hard. It is related to Belgium too!
Detour: Diamond Glint
I like how we have a diamond-related task on the diamond capital of the world. Attention to detail is required to find flaws in the diamonds. Math was involved to calculate the total value of the jewelry. The diamonds being small made it hard to place on the microscope, especially when under the pressure of the race. I find this task much more difficult than the other one, but that's coming from my perspective. The teams being able to guess values lowered its difficulty, but it shouldn't be that way in the first place. From a viewer's point of view, I find the task confusing. I think this task was difficult enough to balance the other one. I just find it more difficult and more confusing from my point of view as a viewer.
Head-to-Head:
I like the addition of this task type to the original franchise, contrary to popular opinion. Different franchises had different names for this task type. Even I called it a roundabout for my fanfiction. Anyway, I think it fits the theme of the season, as the most competitive season yet. First off, I like how culture is involved in a newly introduced task type for the franchise. The origin of fries or frites may also be enlightening for viewers who didn't know it. Aside from culture, I like the task's difficulty. There were a lot of things to consider for the last task of the leg: racing speed, stability of bag of frites on the dolly, dolly handling (turns), bulky outfit as a possible obstacle, the design of and the obstacle course itself, and the task type. It is difficult with all of them together, but it is not impossible given the nature of the task. We see the task done for exactly nine rounds with ten teams on the second leg. It looks easy at the beginning, but watching it over and over allowed me to see the things to consider in this task. Henry & Evan had a lot of difficulty with dolly handling, and that affected their stability with the bag of frites. What made the task really scary and crucial is that the team who never wins in it gets eliminated without another chance to redeem itself from the loss. The task made checking in to the pit stop much harder, since navigation isn't the final key to finishing the leg. It turns out to be the skills or strategy for the task. Given the task's difficulty and required skills, I think it is fair to place it right before the pit stop. (Again, contrary to popular belief.) To win the head-to-head, a strategy or a skill must be used. Henry cut in front of April on his last race, most other racers distracted his or her opponent, Kristi and April were being slow and steady to not make any bag of frites fall, etc. Therefore, even an unfit team can win the head-to-head when the right strategy is used. At least we have teams who are competitive to stay positive and keep racing for the task, not one that just gives away the win to the opponent for no reason but pity. The only problems I can see is exhaustion of any one team and possibly long waiting time, which is unfortunately part of the nature of the task type. Luckily for Henry & Evan, they got enough rest before their final race. However, winning is not impossible even without rest. The difficulty just increases because it's a physical task.
Pit Stop:
The park and the statue seem iconic. I googled Antwerp and went to images, then I see pictures of the park immediately. Cool!
Overall Leg Design:
I really like how the leg had a roadblock, a detour, and an active route info in the form of a head-to-head. It's not just a leg with one roadblock and one detour then that's it. Bonus points to a cultural route info on the start of the Belgian leg. The introduction of the head-to-head to this leg was fitting, in my opinion. Both sides of the detour were very relevant to Antwerp and were also equal in difficulty. The episode showed teams shuffling placements from one location to another, which shows how navigation plays a vital role in this leg, even though it's on foot for most. I think my only issue with the leg is the roadblock. I don't dislike it, but it doesn't catch my attention very much.
Title Quote:
"You're the Best French Fry Ever" is relevant to the frites' significance in the episode. The way Trevor was saying it after Chris won the head-to-head for the team was fitting. Not sure if there's a better quote than this for the episode, but I think it's decent enough given the context and how much frites we've seen in the episode.
Editing:
I think the editing of the episode improved from the previous one. The real issue with the previous episode's editing was the lack of time, thus there were a lot of choppy scenes last week. We got to see more from each team in this episode with a more improved editing. The sequence of where teams are going is clearer compared to the previous episode's. There are two things I particularly liked with the episode's editing.
~The intro came after everything that happened in Iceland. I wasn't expecting it, but I think the flow was smooth. I wished we got to see each team departing, but having thoughts of the first three teams and the last two teams was enough I guess. Despite this being a smooth flow for the start of the episode, I'm not sure if it will consistently be enjoyable if used on future episodes.
~Before goat yoga finished the detour officially, the scene switched to the twins doing the task. Goat yoga's celebration upon finishing the task could be heard even from the twins' perspective. Seeing goat yoga leave right after the perspective switch confirms that they have finished the task. I think it's cool that we got the twins' reactions upon knowing that goat yoga finished the task without having to switch scenes or cameras.
Teams:
Cody & Jessica: Although not consistently in 1st for the whole leg, this team is still rocking with how Cody & Jessica finished the tasks quickly. Had they not made a small 'mistake' in the detour, they probably would've gotten to the head-to-head ahead of NBA. Either way, they finished 1st for doing better at the head-to-head. Now they have redeemed the 1st place they lost on the previous leg. I think they're a really strong team with their task performances so far and nonexistent navigation issues.
Cedric & Shawn: I think navigation was a big factor for them to be ahead for most of the leg. The other factor would probably be their athleticism for traveling from task to task on foot. They would've finished first without the head-to-head, and that shows that they could be a strong team too, despite their fiasco on the previous leg. They almost won the leg, but 2nd is enough to pull their average on the better end of the spectrum. The humor they have on some parts of the episode can be entertaining too. That distinguished them from other teams character-wise.
Kristi & Jen: They're still the smart team I know them as. Last time, Jen quickly noticed the o and the ó during the roadblock. This time, Kristi's strategy during the head-to-head made them win easily. She was slow, but steady. Like what Phil said, the key is not to let the frites fall. Evan could have easily beaten her if she had better handling, but Kristi took her time with the head-to-head to not cause a problem with the frites falling off. She was very careful, and at least that strategy worked for her. Furthermore, what they did during the detour was smart. They just flipped the paper and raised it to a source of light, then they copy everything from there to finish smoothly. They didn't even need a mirror! Reminds me of how one of them got the o and ó quickly. They're very smart and observant.
Trevor & Chris: They proved that they're not only strong but also consistent. We got more scenes from them this time unlike the previous episode. I like how they talked about not being able to see so much when they travel too quickly while on the job. Their comments on the diamond made sense too. There wasn't much other than those, but they can be remembered better compared to the glimpses we have of them on the previous episode.
Alex & Conor: They were also consistent. We see them getting lost at some point, but at least they picked themselves up quickly to make it to 5th place. The speed Alex showed during the head-to-head really reflects his speed and competitive drive (hehe) as a professional race car driver. They didn't struggle too much for the whole leg, which is good for them.
Lucas & Brittany: The pineapple code was cute. At least they kept their cool together. A communication method like this could be helpful in stressful situations. We also learned that Brittany easily becomes emotional. The use of the mirror during the detour was a smart move. The clue didn't say tools like mirrors weren't allowed, so using it to their advantage was a smart move. They completed the task faster after using it too!
Joey & Tim: Interesting how they talked about working against each other on food competitions and working together for this race. Technically, that means they're rivals, which is a cool relationship for a team. I barely see team relationships like this, and if I did, I probably don't remember them. It's interesting how they have to communicate with one another. They're used to working individually, so this could be an additional challenge for them to overcome.
Henry & Evan: They started well. They were in the middle of the pack early into the leg, and they got to the head-to-head in 3rd place. However, they were competing in all the head-to-head rounds except for the first and the last ones. Their first two competitors were slow, but their handling on the dolly was something they still had to get used to. When they got used to it enough, the more aggressive competitors pushed them further back. They were either aggressive with speed or with the reckless handling of the dolly. Good thing they got enough rest before goat yoga arrived. April was slow and careful like Kristi, but Henry's desperate aggressiveness got him to pick up his speed. On his fourth round, he probably got used to handling the dolly too. The strategy to cut in front of April was smart too. It prevents her from beating him. What I find really dramatic was how Henry tripped right before the finish line. Good thing he got up quickly and still finished before April. Overall, I think Henry & Evan ran a smooth leg. The luck they had with who they were competing against after their first tries just wasn't on their favor, as those competitors were more aggressive than they were. Still, Henry found a strategy to beat someone before someone beats them again. What I really like is how they stayed positive and kept trying without having to cry or complain like some racers from other seasons. Not that it's a bad thing, but they kept their cool even in a pressure like this.
Eric & Daniel: The twins had rough legs. They've been placing at the bottom for two legs in a row now. When they mentioned that their downfall was on navigation, it easily fills the missing gaps that probably made us wonder how they fell behind in Iceland. For this leg, their issue with navigation was at least shown unlike previously. It made sense that a firefighter had enough experience climbing a ladder, so they seemed to have breezed through the roadblock, but everyone else did too. Switching detours was a risky choice they made, and they would've been eliminated had the head-to-head not existed. There are a couple of teams in past seasons and also in different franchises that end up being eliminated for switching detours. Sometimes there are a bunch of them on the same leg, so they fall behind all together. For the case of the twins here, they're the only ones that switched, and it even gave goat yoga a glimmer of hope. Luckily for them, they have one last chance to catch up at the head-to-head. April improved on her speed and aggressiveness, but Daniel was more aggressive during the head-to-head. Henry or Evan might not be able to beat Daniel had they still gone head-to-head with each other. Daniel's aggressiveness started with speed, but it later ended up with a successful attempt to overtake April, by crashing into the side of her dolly. I guess being aggressive and careful at the same time is just what could make one win the head-to-head. However, they're also lucky about this task type existing for the first time this season. Otherwise, they would've been gone as early as the second leg.
April & Sarah: They did better this leg compared to last leg, although they were in the middle approaching the bottom of the pack. April's stability with the frites was nice to see. On her first round of the head-to-head, she was being slow and steady, but that strategy didn't work for someone who already went around the course three times previously. Perhaps they could've won easily had April competed against Henry or Evan on their first rounds. April's strategy was similar to Kristi's. On the last round, April was adding the aggressive factor to her race against Daniel. She even tried to cover her lead once she got it. Daniel was just more aggressive to crash into her dolly, and that unfortunately didn't let her catch up to him afterwards. It sucks that they had to wait three hours for the twins, just for them to catch up to goat yoga, but that's part of the head-to-head as a new task type. I like goat yoga's improvement this leg. They would've been 2nd to the last again had the head-to-head not existed at this point. They made a really good underdog team, and I wish I could've seen them go further, but alas their race ends here. At least they had a positive end here, because they seemed to have loose ends on the previous leg. Winning the closest footrace ever is something they can be proud of at least. They may not have that strong super competitive drive, but it's fun to watch more experienced teams race, especially if they go further. Too bad the underdogging ends here.
Others:
~Phil's narration during the head-to-head added more excitement to the race in my opinion. The commentaries were unique here, because the various head-to-head tasks in different franchises didn't have something like that. Without the commentaries from Phil, the frites race would still be exciting. I just thought it added some flavor to the task.
Overall Episode:
Overall, I think this episode was better than the previous one. There was a lot of history and culture of Antwerp and Belgium shown throughout the episode. Navigation still becomes an issue and it is one of the primary factors for some of the placement shuffling throughout the leg. The roadblock was just okay from my perspective. The detour was equally balanced in history and difficulty. The head-to-head this leg was a good way to introduce the new task type to this season. I enjoyed watching frites racing around an obstacle course, but I think the design of the task itself was fair too, not just favoring speed alone.
Scenery: 6/10
Roadblock: 3/10
Detour: 8/10
Head-to-Head: 9/10
Leg Design: 8/10
Editing: 8/10
Episode: 8/10
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Especially since April had to wait THREE hours for the Firefighters to arrive. Just hate it being a final task, there should always be something else after it. Sigh.
That is awful. I cannot imagine how disappointed would I be if I had to wait for another team for 3 hours, only to have a race causing me being eliminated :cmas31:
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I think Ocean Rescue is getting ample airtime. I think they're the team whose backgrounds and personalities I'm most familiar with so far.
Hi there
After a few months of lurking on here I finally made an account lol. I was in Washington Square for the start of the race and was so curious what happened afterwards that I stumbled upon here. I had a great time tracking the teams through you guys and thank you all for all your sleuthing!
Anyways, I was so excited for this season to air (especially given all the updates) and because since witnessing the race start, I've been binge-watching some old seasons I had missed. But I'm a little disappointed with the episodes. I feel like the editing is so off this season, more so in episode 1. I'm disappointed that the ring girls were eliminated in such a close race and I hated the face-off as being the sole determinant of elimination too. I also feel like certain teams aren't getting adequate airtime (ocean rescue, well strung). I am surprised by how much I like a few teams though (skiers, debaters).
Still excited to watch this season unfold though! And thanks to you all for entertaining me these past few months!
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Especially since April had to wait THREE hours for the Firefighters to arrive. Just hate it being a final task, there should always be something else after it. Sigh.
In an interview I read (THR) April said the Yalees had three hours of rest time before the Yogas arrived at the Frites race. Then the Yogas waited for the Twins for a bit before they arrived.
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Especially since April had to wait THREE hours for the Firefighters to arrive. Just hate it being a final task, there should always be something else after it. Sigh.
That is awful. I haven't seen that. Can you share where you heard that? Thanks.
Confirmed with the racers involved.
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Especially since April had to wait THREE hours for the Firefighters to arrive. Just hate it being a final task, there should always be something else after it. Sigh.
In an interview I read (THR) April said the Yalees had three hours of rest time before the Yogas arrived at the Frites race. Then the Yogas waited for the Twins for a bit before they arrived.
I don't know how long Yale waited for Yoga. However it is possible that happened as well, or that that April was confused since Yoga definitely waited ~3 hours for Firefighters.
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Hi there
After a few months of lurking on here I finally made an account lol. I was in Washington Square for the start of the race and was so curious what happened afterwards that I stumbled upon here. I had a great time tracking the teams through you guys and thank you all for all your sleuthing!
Anyways, I was so excited for this season to air (especially given all the updates) and because since witnessing the race start, I've been binge-watching some old seasons I had missed. But I'm a little disappointed with the episodes. I feel like the editing is so off this season, more so in episode 1. I'm disappointed that the ring girls were eliminated in such a close race and I hated the face-off as being the sole determinant of elimination too. I also feel like certain teams aren't getting adequate airtime (ocean rescue, well strung). I am surprised by how much I like a few teams though (skiers, debaters).
Still excited to watch this season unfold though! And thanks to you all for entertaining me these past few months!
''
:welcome: to RFF! Glad you finally took the plunge!
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Mixed feelings about this. On the left is "Stan" the chocolatier; on the right is Stijn Keuleers (http://www.stijnkeuleers.be/en/index.php). a Flemish actor. Three times in thirty seasons teams have come across a chocolatier--two of the three times they were dwarfs. I didn't buy it in Bariloche, and if that's Stijn I'm certainly not buying it now. If this is some producer's idea of Oompa-Loompa humor, it's in rather poor taste.
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Especially since April had to wait THREE hours for the Firefighters to arrive. Just hate it being a final task, there should always be something else after it. Sigh.
In an interview I read (THR) April said the Yalees had three hours of rest time before the Yogas arrived at the Frites race. Then the Yogas waited for the Twins for a bit before they arrived.
I don't know how long Yale waited for Yoga. However it is possible that happened as well, or that that April was confused since Yoga definitely waited ~3 hours for Firefighters.
Sorry but it is like
Debaters ~ 3 hours ~ Yoga ~ 3 hours ~ Twins?
Or simply 3 hours gap between either Debaters and Yoga or Yoga and Twins?
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Totally agree with all of you, that fries race was horrible, it should be placed earlier (maybe after the roadblock). I feel bad for Yoga mom, they beat the firefighters with big margin of time but then eliminated because they had to wait for 3 hours. I like the detour, it was fun to watch, but i don't like when Phil talking during the fries race, for a moment thought i was watching survivor :cmas11 :cmas11
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Detour: Diamond Glint
I like how we have a diamond-related task on the diamond capital of the world. Attention to detail is required to find flaws in the diamonds. Math was involved to calculate the total value of the jewelry. The diamonds being small made it hard to place on the microscope, especially when under the pressure of the race. I find this task much more difficult than the other one, but that's coming from my perspective. The teams being able to guess values lowered its difficulty, but it shouldn't be that way in the first place. From a viewer's point of view, I find the task confusing. I think this task was difficult enough to balance the other one. I just find it more difficult and more confusing from my point of view as a viewer.
Head-to-Head:
I like the addition of this task type to the original franchise, contrary to popular opinion. Different franchises had different names for this task type. Even I called it a roundabout for my fanfiction. Anyway, I think it fits the theme of the season, as the most competitive season yet. First off, I like how culture is involved in a newly introduced task type for the franchise. The origin of fries or frites may also be enlightening for viewers who didn't know it. Aside from culture, I like the task's difficulty. There were a lot of things to consider for the last task of the leg: racing speed, stability of bag of frites on the dolly, dolly handling (turns), bulky outfit as a possible obstacle, the design of and the obstacle course itself, and the task type. It is difficult with all of them together, but it is not impossible given the nature of the task. We see the task done for exactly nine rounds with ten teams on the second leg. It looks easy at the beginning, but watching it over and over allowed me to see the things to consider in this task. Henry & Evan had a lot of difficulty with dolly handling, and that affected their stability with the bag of frites. What made the task really scary and crucial is that the team who never wins in it gets eliminated without another chance to redeem itself from the loss. The task made checking in to the pit stop much harder, since navigation isn't the final key to finishing the leg. It turns out to be the skills or strategy for the task. Given the task's difficulty and required skills, I think it is fair to place it right before the pit stop. (Again, contrary to popular belief.) To win the head-to-head, a strategy or a skill must be used. Henry cut in front of April on his last race, most other racers distracted his or her opponent, Kristi and April were being slow and steady to not make any bag of frites fall, etc. Therefore, even an unfit team can win the head-to-head when the right strategy is used. At least we have teams who are competitive to stay positive and keep racing for the task, not one that just gives away the win to the opponent for no reason but pity. The only problems I can see is exhaustion of any one team and possibly long waiting time, which is unfortunately part of the nature of the task type. Luckily for Henry & Evan, they got enough rest before their final race. However, winning is not impossible even without rest. The difficulty just increases because it's a physical task.
Editing:
I think the editing of the episode improved from the previous one. The real issue with the previous episode's editing was the lack of time, thus there were a lot of choppy scenes last week. We got to see more from each team in this episode with a more improved editing. The sequence of where teams are going is clearer compared to the previous episode's. There are two things I particularly liked with the episode's editing.
~The intro came after everything that happened in Iceland. I wasn't expecting it, but I think the flow was smooth. I wished we got to see each team departing, but having thoughts of the first three teams and the last two teams was enough I guess. Despite this being a smooth flow for the start of the episode, I'm not sure if it will consistently be enjoyable if used on future episodes.
~Before goat yoga finished the detour officially, the scene switched to the twins doing the task. Goat yoga's celebration upon finishing the task could be heard even from the twins' perspective. Seeing goat yoga leave right after the perspective switch confirms that they have finished the task. I think it's cool that we got the twins' reactions upon knowing that goat yoga finished the task without having to switch scenes or cameras.
Others:
~Phil's narration during the head-to-head added more excitement to the race in my opinion. The commentaries were unique here, because the various head-to-head tasks in different franchises didn't have something like that. Without the commentaries from Phil, the frites race would still be exciting. I just thought it added some flavor to the task.
The narration wasn't that bad in the head to head, though it was really stating the obvious as in Survivor. But at least it wasn't annoying cutaways like in Big Brother to the Diary Room to just repeat what we see.
The final race wasn't that difficult though. Most, if they had the strength, seemed to pick up how to move the dolly immediately. The obstacles on the course were virtually non-existent, there was a ramp.
The diamond task wasn't that easy to guess as they had a precise figure to reach, and they only seemed to get close by following the right procedure, so even though we didn't get the exact details of the task I liked the difficultly.
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Welcome Tiger17! I'm also bingeing TAR from the beginning. Phil seemed to have had more of a sense of humor back then. Now he seems more like Dad. During the race, I thought he was trying to make fun of the typical commentary by talking in a cheesy fashion. So far, I'm rooting for the debaters and the Xtreme women.
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Agree on Phil.
I don't like his hosting so far this season.
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Agree on Phil.
I don't like his hosting so far this season.
Same, some of Phil's mat chats now are becoming borderline insulting to the racers :( Like last week when he told Miss Iceland how Conor sleeps on Alex's couch.
Is he trying to become more like Jeff Probst or something?
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it's interesting because I think it's pretty obvious that they have tried to find ways to give Phil more exposure on the episodes. Maybe it's an effort to get him some Emmy recognition? And while he's definitely deserving, I don't think trying to be like Jeff Probst is the way to go. And that's really how his hosting in the amount of exposure he's had so far feels like.
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In older seasons, he was more reserved, which made his signature eyebrow raise work so well. In recent seasons, it seems like he tries to be more outgoing, which doesn't work imo
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Especially since April had to wait THREE hours for the Firefighters to arrive. Just hate it being a final task, there should always be something else after it. Sigh.
In an interview I read (THR) April said the Yalees had three hours of rest time before the Yogas arrived at the Frites race. Then the Yogas waited for the Twins for a bit before they arrived.
I don't know how long Yale waited for Yoga. However it is possible that happened as well, or that that April was confused since Yoga definitely waited ~3 hours for Firefighters.
Sorry but it is like
Debaters ~ 3 hours ~ Yoga ~ 3 hours ~ Twins?
Or simply 3 hours gap between either Debaters and Yoga or Yoga and Twins?
There was a three hour gap between Yoga and Firefighters.
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Especially since April had to wait THREE hours for the Firefighters to arrive. Just hate it being a final task, there should always be something else after it. Sigh.
In an interview I read (THR) April said the Yalees had three hours of rest time before the Yogas arrived at the Frites race. Then the Yogas waited for the Twins for a bit before they arrived.
I don't know how long Yale waited for Yoga. However it is possible that happened as well, or that that April was confused since Yoga definitely waited ~3 hours for Firefighters.
Sorry but it is like
Debaters ~ 3 hours ~ Yoga ~ 3 hours ~ Twins?
Or simply 3 hours gap between either Debaters and Yoga or Yoga and Twins?
There was a three hour gap between Yoga and Firefighters.
Also a possibility that it was both. Sarah said twice in this interview that the debaters had a three-hour break.
https://parade.com/636714/mikebloom/the-amazing-race-30-april-gould-and-sarah-williams-on-head-to-heads-and-butting-heads/ (https://parade.com/636714/mikebloom/the-amazing-race-30-april-gould-and-sarah-williams-on-head-to-heads-and-butting-heads/)
Edit: Wait sorry, just saw that you already said it was a possibility. My bad.
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Very happy that Belgium gets another visit especially in Antwerp. The scenery at the Pit Stop was awesome. Both Detours were quite challenging if teams were not paying attention to detail, really great equalizer. The Roadblock was ok, I just hoped it was a "chocolate-themed" one. The FrietRace had a good concept but it was placed at the wrong part of the Race. Better if it was placed after the Roadblock. I feel bad for the Goat Yoga Moms, they were annoying on the 1st leg but they did better and more likable this leg. Hate the Firefighters, boring, bland and played dirty. Also, I don't like Phil's narration of some scenes especially at the Friet Race. Love that the Pit Stop Greeter gets some amount of airtime interacting with Phil and the teams. Like the part when the Competitive Eaters were checking in and had a brief exchange of banter between them. It is a small but nice addition. Another thing that I love about the Amazing Race is how they really blend the tasks with the culture and the history and this leg gave it. My youngest sibling was surprised to know that French Fries actually originated in Belgium, all this time she thought it was in France. You learn something everyday, they say. Overall, nice leg. 8/10. Had the Friet Race placed after the Roadblock, it could had a different impact on the teams once they get on either Detours. Rooting for Alex & Conor, Kristi & Jen, Henry & Evan, Lucas & Brittany and Cody & Jessica.
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Cody & Jessica depart 2nd, $202 for this leg of the race.
Correction to keep this point accurate. The amount, and confirmed by close captioning, is $272.
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It looks like the confessional was at Het Steen (source (https://goo.gl/maps/eUkeP3RtGLs)).
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I loved the scene from the beginning of the episode on the plane where April points out that they are all on the same plane so nobody is in last place. But written on the wall two rows behind them are the words "the back!". So they are clearly seated almost all the way back in the plane.
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Inn Justin and Diana’s podcast one of the Twins was on and said the teams made a pact not to run in the airports so it didn’t matter where they sat on the plane. Justin and Corey couldn’t believe that. And wondered how long that lasted.
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That's weird.
It doesn't really nullify the advantage of sitting at the front, as you'll still leave the plane earlier. All it does is favor teams who wouldn't be able to run fast.
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Mixed feelings about this. On the left is "Stan" the chocolatier; on the right is Stijn Keuleers (http://www.stijnkeuleers.be/en/index.php). a Flemish actor. Three times in thirty seasons teams have come across a chocolatier--two of the three times they were dwarfs. I didn't buy it in Bariloche, and if that's Stijn I'm certainly not buying it now. If this is some producer's idea of Oompa-Loompa humor, it's in rather poor taste.
That is crazy. Why do that? ???
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In Justin and Diana’s podcast one of the Twins was on and said the teams made a pact not to run in the airports so it didn’t matter where they sat on the plane. Justin and Corey couldn’t believe that. And wondered how long that lasted.
Most competitive season ever indeed! :lol
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This was such a fun leg- up until that last task.
I know what they were trying to do with the head-to-head, but I would much rather have had an Active Route Info that was based on time, instead of on direct competition; you could still have two teams running, but both could succeed, and both could fail.
Some teams would still struggle, and there would still be that competitive urgency since it's right by the pitstop.
Or just don't have a direct competition task right at the end of the leg.
I'm pretty sure that trend is going to continue throughout the race, so let's be ready for that :cmas11
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Jen Hudak put up comments about Episode 2 on her blog site:
http://jenhudak.com/amazing-race-30-2/ (http://jenhudak.com/amazing-race-30-2/)
From the Cutting Room Floor – TAR 30.2
The Amazing Race Season 30 Episode 2: “You’re The Best French Fry Ever” – #TeamExtreme Recap
Another leg down, another country we’ve never been to, and Kristi and I landed on the podium during The Amazing Race once more! This week’s episode was able to capture a lot more of the “real” action from the race (i.e. – the action that played a major role in any team’s performance). Without needing to spend as much time introducing the teams’ background’s and only covering 10 teams’ journeys, allowed for this. However, there’s still a few details to fill in about our race.
Why were you in such a hurry leaving the mat in Iceland if all the teams were on the same flight?
When Kristi and I opened our clue, it told us that we had flights reserved for that afternoon, but that if we found a more advantageous flight, we could take it. So we were in a hurry to get there to see our possibilities! When we got to the travel agency, we found a flight that would arrive about 30 minutes earlier than the original itinerary. We were likely the ONLY team who could make this flight as it left in just over 2 hours (which would mean we had to race to the airport). It would be a longer day of travel with a connection through Oslo, but an advantage is an advantage, right?
Why didn’t you book the alternate flight?
Going into this race we told ourselves that if we were the only team who could get on a seemingly advantageous flight, that we SHOULD NOT take it. We learned from watching this show that it’s sometimes safer to have other teams around you, especially early on. However, adrenaline (we’re on the Amazing Race) and ego (we want to maintain our lead) played a role and we were VERY close to pulling the trigger. Jody came in and left, calm, cool, and collected, so we could only assume that they took the original flight. Then we realized that the airport was not the one for which I saw the sign close by, but actually 50 minutes away. (This was when I realized we had directions from the wrong airport in leg 1).
By taking the second flight, we ended up with hours to get to the airport. So, we decided to take a bus to save money. In the bus ticket office, we took off the boots given to us in Leg 1, and asked them to take them to goodwill. Hopefully they ended up there! We took the bus with Yale, Well-Strung and Indy, while other teams, with later starts, took taxis. This was the first opportunity that we had to actually talk with Trevor & Chris, since we were on different flights to Iceland.
When did you arrive in Belgium?
We landed in Amsterdam around 7 or 8 p.m. and had to take a train from Amsterdam to Antwerp. All the teams got in an unnecessary footrace to the train station to all end up, yet again, on the same train! When we arrived at the station in Antwerp, we had to find the chocolate shop. It was after 10 p.m. at this point, but we had to assume that were going to be thrust into a challenge as soon as we found the shop. So, we started running, again. Well-Strung got their first, followed by Indy, followed by Kristi and me. This is when we learned that the shop wouldn’t open until 9 a.m. the next day. Time to hunker down.
Where did you sleep?
We slept on the floor of an old hotel? Not entirely sure what the building was, but we were in a large open room that had a small kitchen/bar in one corner, and one random couch in the middle. Everyone found their spot and set up camp. Amazing Race production was kind enough to provide teams with light foam sleeping pads, but we didn’t need them since we brought our own. Or so we thought…We gave Indy our sleeping pads, so they could double up, but it got really COLD overnight. Kristi and I kept adding layers until we had nothing left in our bags. Turns out inflatable sleeping pads don’t hold heat well. Poor Cedric, however, didn’t sleep a WINK that night. But it didn’t seem to impact his performance the next day.
Kristi crushed the Roadblock, what was her strategy?
We arrived to the Sky Climb in 8th place…not where we wanted to be. Fortunately, there were 4 spots on the sky climb, so Kristi was able to go on the second ride, tying us up with the teams who arrived in 5th, 6th and 7th. Though most teams successfully completed the challenge on the first go (some of that is questionable though…), Kristi was able to get up the ladder and back down to the bottom before the ride was over. She wrapped her leg around the ladder, which helped keep her more vertical, thus making the climb faster. This enabled her to jump off, jet over to me, to read our next clue. She crushed it, passing 3 teams and putting us in 5th place, but you should have seen the bruises on the inside of her thighs!
Why did you choose to do “Old Print” and not “Diamond Glint?”
This was a very easy decision for us to make. In the description of the detours, there was an element of Diamond Glint that was very subjective: determining color and clarity. I don’t think the mathematics element was actually the problem for any of the teams, but determining those values. Both of these factors changed the formula, so if you got them wrong, your answer was wrong. You’ll have to ask a team who did it, but that’s my guess. Old Print sounded much more straight-forward. Once we figured out that it needed to be a mirror image, we were able to move pretty quickly through it.
You left the detour in 2nd place, why did you arrive at the square in 4th?
When we got our clue leaving the printing press, we found a very nice woman who spoke flemish to translate it. Then we pulled out our “trusty” map of Antwerp and asked her where Silvius Brabo square was. We had a tourist map, which had images of historical buildings on the map. She pointed to one on the shoreline (or so I thought) and we navigated there quite smoothly, but it was the wrong building. We got hung up a little longer because we saw production equipment for post-race interviews. Eventually, we found someone who pointed us in the right direction and we made our way to the square.
What were your thoughts about the “Head-to-Head?”
For the first time in Amazing Race history, teams had to go head-to-head in a challenge. We knew signing up that the masterminds behind The Amazing Race could do anything they wanted, anytime they wanted. We were warned on the start-line that there would be twists this season, but I don’t think any of us ever anticipated this. Kristi and I benefited from the head-to-head in this episode. Arriving to the square in 4th, Kristi beat Evan in the head-to-head, thus leading us to a 3rd place finish. The exciting part of the Amazing Race is that it tests racers as all-around competitors, from physicality, to grit, to intelligence, to social prowess.
The head-to-head nearly nullified our performance in all other challenges. Sure, getting there early gives you more opportunity to stay in the race, but continuing on in the race comes down to whether or not your good at the head-to-head skill. The argument can easily be made, however, that is true for any challenge you face. If you get stuck on one challenge in one moment of this race, it can be the end. Ultimately, I thought it was quite exciting to watch the Frites Race on TV. I thought it would get old after a while, but it kept me on my toes and I even knew the outcome!
Kristi’s Thoughts on the Head-to-Head:
Kristi, however, felt more strongly about it. She was saying as soon as we were done, that there was only one team who would be going home that day: Goat Yoga. I was hopeful that the skill element would play more of a roll, but I wasn’t the one who did the Frites Race, so I have to defer to her. Kristi asserts that if the head-to-head was in the middle or beginning of a leg that led into other challenges it would be better. That way, you would have other challenges through which you could potentially make up time. She was not a fan!
On to the Next!
Kristi and I race off to Morocco this week! We’ve never set foot on African soil, so we’re excited to go there. Episode 3 is going to be action-packed, so hope you can tune in! 8 pm ET/PT, 7 pm MT/CT on CBS!