Well, to sum up what I didn't enjoy about TAR Australia 1:
1. NEL Placements: Having one on Leg 1 is something I absolutely hate, unless, like TAR19, Leg 2 happens to be a Double Elimination leg. However, at least that first NEL saved Mo & Mos who we certainly needed to keep around for a few more episodes!
2. My biggest problem was the winners. Tyler & Nathan seemed so dull and they seemed to have an amazing amount of luck, such as finding passports after leaving them carelessly to be stolen. Surely someone would have the intellect to sleep with the little bag ON. I really hated them, and in fact, they were the
only team I didn't like.
3. The casting was great, as we had a lot of lovely teams. But any season with three all-male teams in the Top Four is already anticlimatic. Look at TAR16, which is the most abysmal TAR ever, in my opinion of course.
4. Too many strength-based challenges, such as the saws that killed off Anastasia & Chris, or the carriage pulling in Prague.
5. I was really looking forward to the Czech Republic when I first heard the route, as I personally find Prague to be one of the most beautiful places on Earth. But the legs in the Czech Republic were awful in my opinion, especially compared to TAR15's visit.
6. In my honest opinion, we had five great legs to start the race, followed by a bland remainder of the race. The legs in Europe had bad task-design for my liking and Israel lacked the suspense factor, although the tasks were good for the most part.
7. This one isn't a criticism about Season 1, but it is a must for Season 2 - we need to see the Americas being visited. It is understandable that Season 1 didn't do it, but Season 2 must do it.
8. In my opinion, the Final Leg should
not be half-half in two different places. I prefer teams flying straight to the Final Destination City and all tasks taking place there. That thing on the Singapore Flyer was one of the most ridiculous challenges I have ever seen, especially as it was on the last leg!
Well, I hope you have endured my ranting without sustaining any serious injuries
and that just about sums it up for me. My major criticism is the winners and the M/M dominance, although I really loved Matt & Tom and Jeff & Luke.