The following are comments for legs 1-11 on designer routes from guest judge Lee Sanders, who graciously dedicated his time to comment on and score these legs. Join me in giving him thanks!
Note: Comments from the remaining judges and legs, and then the results show, will be coming sooner rather than later. We look forward to wrapping things up and crowning a winner. Thank you for your patience, especially during these difficult times.
Leg 1Show content
Nuku
Hard to go wrong with NZ. I’m not a fan of getting teams dirty right off the bat. The Vudu Cafe event, like many food-related events, seems difficult to make compelling (unless some team has a meltdown). Gorgeous end location.
Bookworm
Starting Line task seems like it could take a while, rather than propelling us into the action. That Mayan RB also seems tough—impossible unless teams find those plaques. I love the cultural aspects of this leg, though.
nrh2110
I like the use of traditional and modern in this leg; people tend to think of Kyoto as an “old” city. Geisha event obviously funny with teams of two guys; cultural sensitivity issue here?
Betheactress
Really like the Starting Line task and the flow between events. Harvesting tomatoes seems much less compelling narratively. Love the iconic Kayan brass neck rings and the World’s Largest Book location.
Leg 2Show content
Nuku
Slightly one-dimensional with the water-based events, but it’s an extremely cool dimension (though expensive to shoot—!). The skydive has been done, but it’s always spectacular. I don’t mind seeing it again.
Bookworm
Detour has strong, interesting options, and I really like the Capoeira RB. Finding the gourd stand is just OK for me; we’ve been in similar situations a lot. Nice use of a lesser-known city here.
nrh2110
The activities here seem secondary to the location, like you were looking for things to have teams do. I do like integrating smell into the Detour, though… very creative. The monastic debate is also cool.
Betheactress
The 7-11 side of the Detour in particular seems difficult to keep visually compelling; stalls in the night market are better. But the palanquin fireworks are great! Dragon and Tiger pagoda event is a fine use of the location.
Leg 3Show content
Nuku
I like the variety of tasks in this leg—and Cambodia is such a cool location, with so many options. I’m a little on the fence about the Angkor Wat pick-a-number, but overall a great leg.
Bookworm
Barcelona could be a little done-to-death, but this is reasonably strong. The Detour has one obviously more fun option, which isn’t optimal. RB sounds incredibly tough.
nrh2110
I can’t imagine the production ever allowing children on a motorized boat driven by team members; are licenses required? Other elements are OK.
Betheactress
An extremely political leg. As presented, it’s extremely unlikely that the Bricks Down (and probably also the Slums Up—especially with that title!) Detour would make it to production, much less air. Shrimp paste roadblock is tough to make interesting visually.
Leg 4Show content
Nuku
The Songkran Festival is a great idea—the only potential difficulty being controlling and securing release forms from the crowd. It’s so much more fun than the lantern Detour that I wonder if it wouldn’t be better if it were a mandatory event. Muay Talay is great for a H2H; love it. Other elements are OK-to-strong.
Bookworm
I like the Speed Bump—I’d actually prefer to swap it with the cravat-tying Roadblock. The Detour is just OK for me. Cooking is always tough to make compelling visually, and searching a market for a Thing is a familiar trope. I like the funicular; they’re always good fun. Finding Venus could be a time sink, which is a concern.
nrh2110
I really like how you’ve focused on cultural events here, rather than the usual bungee jumps and jet boats. It’s a little tough to make cooking challenges compelling visually, but generally this is quite strong.
Betheactress
The FF is visually gorgeous, and I think this leg generally relies on the setting more than on fresh-feeling events. Food-making tasks can be so tough to make visually compelling. I really like the Goat Stroll, though—I’d be hoping every team chose that option!
Leg 5Show content
Nuku
I particularly like the Detour here—interesting, cultural, contrasting but seemingly equally tough. The RB seems just OK. The music event is such a cool idea—I want to know a bit more about the specifics, but of course I’m intrigued! Other events are also pretty strong… nice leg.
Bookworm
Super-strong leg here. Lots of local specificity, interesting and cinematic events… very little to criticize. Belgium just got so much more interesting in my mind!
nrh2110
Speed Bump seems kind of bland… as do the Blind Detour options. None of these have the teams being super-active. The additional tasks along the way seem cooler, and allow for some great scenery shots.
Betheactress
I love, love, love fishing bikes out of the canal. It’s a whole aspect of this city that I’d never considered. The Detour is strong, too—similar enough in difficulty, yet different and culturally relevant. I even like the additional tasks along the way… This is a great leg.
Leg 6Show content
Nuku
Roadblock is so cool that I kind of want both teammates to experience it. The necklace Detour doesn’t feel as fresh to me as the elephant shelter (which I quite like). The hot air balloon ride would make for some incredible visuals (and a nice opportunity for some Epic Amazing Race music). Nice.
Bookworm
Speed Bump is appropriate and well-integrated. I like the Detour options, as well—a nice way to combine animal hijinks with the buzz of a busy marketplace (on one side); a nice, active cultural event on the other. I also kind of like that the RB isn’t too strict.
nrh2110
FF is cool, with lots of cultural significance. Luxor is a great location. Detour feels balanced, though maybe a little fussy rather than intense. Valley of the Kings riddles are OK—my only small concern being with teams *running* around that incredible location.
Betheactress
Racing the Nuna is a cool and unique H2H… the rest of the events here are somewhat stereotypical for The Netherlands (clogs, tulips, stroopwafels) but well-constructed. (Race teams + wheels of cheese seems like a perennial winner anywhere!)
Leg 7Show content
Nuku
Figuring out a puzzle; learning a dance… these are OK, if a little done-to-death. I like the Picigin event, though, and the Archaeological Museum event could be quite cinematic for a “thinking”-type thing, with maps aplenty and old-looking tools.
Bookworm
That FF sounds *hard*. Which is OK, as players might get there and then give up… always dramatic. The tunnels between the churches and the cool location make what could be a boring RB (solving puzzles) really cool. And I love how dorky the “Tongue-Tied” side of the Detour would be.
nrh2110
That Sibelius side of the Detour is giving me “needle-drop” flashbacks from music school! PC or not, I think the wife-carrying thing is a hilarious event. Add in a little eating task, and this is a really fun leg. It all hinges on the wife-carrying, and whether it could be presented in a way that the show could actually get on air.
Betheactress
I really like the Roadblock here—a chance for teams to be active and for the show to be cinematic at the same time. (I’m a sucker for labyrinths) I also like the Detour options—culturally tied to the location, interesting, comparably difficult… Really nice.
Leg 8Show content
Nuku
I like the Speed Bump here—culturally appropriate and potentially really funny. I also like the Detour—those beer bikes are iconic (if not specifically Latvian), and the spa side clue reveal is clever. Bobsledding adds some action to this leg, making it strong all around.
Bookworm
The Roadblock is kind of passive for the team member, but the dancing and costumes compensate well. I always enjoy incorporating scents into an event, so the spice side of the Detour appeals to me. Lift Off is a more common sort of event, but it’s OK. I like the add’l tasks—especially the monks.
nrh2110
The Santa Detour is fun, but the Help Santa side could be tedious if teams don’t get lucky. Roadblock delivers on action, with a “read the words as you fly by” add-on to make it tougher (pronunciation?). Angry Birds is a nice little throwback. The huskies are probably my favorite part; I might want to feature them more in the episode.
Betheactress
Lots of FFs in your route! I like this one in particular. The RB here seems very familiar—and “replicate the setup” just isn’t my favorite activity type. The Guelta is a terrific location, though, and you get the most out of it between this RB and the “collecting water” side of the Detour. This leg is good, but I’m left wishing for something a little more compelling.
Leg 9Show content
Nuku
Kind of a creepy Detour, and I love it. Right in keeping with the character and history of the city. The RB is potentially lots of fun, too. The additional tasks seem a tiny bit perfunctory, but they showcase the city well.
Bookworm
The Detour options both have a little twist from the usual trope they’re based on, which helps keep them interesting. The head-to-head event has the potential to change the game drastically—which I like a lot—without putting anyone hopelessly behind. The band RB is fun, too… though potentially *very* difficult to get good production sound in that environment. Well done overall.
nrh2110
I think the Maxiavalanche event is just too dangerous to make it to production. It’d be incredible, .ut no way. Likewise, to a lesser extent, with the Catalonian Casteller side of the Detour—huge safety concerns here. Beyond these, your events are OK… sort of standard finding/searching tropes. But I have to grade this leg harshly on safety issues, which would make much of it a no-go.
Betheactress
Really neat to feature twins on the FF—cool way to incorporate that fact. I had to re-read the Adire-making side of the Detour (dyeing, not dying—!), but I’m not docking points for that. I really like the wall-building, especially as it ends with a spear throw! Lots of cool cultural things going on here, and I really enjoyed them all.
Leg 10Show content
Nuku
The Detour seems a little one-sided (in terms of fun vs. not-fun); both feature cool settings, though. I like the RB—or maybe I just love tapas!—and I’m glad you didn’t have teams *making* the tapas here. I feel the Alhambra is slightly under-used with the event as written. It’s such a gorgeous location, and that could so easily be missed with teams just assembling a suit of armor.
Bookworm
What a gorgeous location. The FF is fine, though eating challenges aren’t my particular favorite. The RB is a little confusing, but I appreciate the effort to put a fresh twist on a familiar activity type. The bamboo pole side of the Detour feels fresher than the Tujia dance learning, but they’re both cool and interesting. Hanging onto the cricket is a nice touch!
nrh2110
I like the Speed Bump here—appropriate in difficulty and culturally tied into the location. I love the Roadblock, of course—it’s a great integration of an indigenous musical tradition. Simple but effective. The rest of the activities here are fine; the location provides a nice backdrop for some tried-and-true activities.
Betheactress
I love the Shooting side of the Detour here; the Shucking side is another food-making challenge, which is… OK. The Mayan calendar RB is a strong use of familiar—and very cool—imagery. And a little memory game-style challenge along the way is the icing on the cake. Hard to go wrong with Chichen Itza. Good choice and a solid leg.
Leg 11Show content
Nuku
Speed Bump is cool and appropriately difficult. The “Communicate” side of the Detour seems more unique than the ‘learn a dance’ trope used in “Celebrate.” Both are fine, though. The RB seems difficult to make compelling, at least until teams are trying to hike with that llama (please be stubborn, Mr. Llama!).
Bookworm
RB is the familiar search-the-market trope… but what a market! I also love both sides of this Detour. Wild. The Speed Bump seems like it could be time-consuming and/or throw Chuck and Jim horribly off track if they misinterpreted the clue somehow. But that’s a tiny concern. Additional tasks are fine—I particularly like the acrobats and how you used them.
nrh2110
The juggling Roadblock could be a *huge* leap forward or backward, depending on if a team member already knows how to juggle even a little. I like both sides of the Detour, despite them being familiar tropes—the cultural tie-ins saves them for me. The sack race could be humiliating, which is always awesome. All in all, a nice leg.
Betheactress
I really like that the Detour features two ways to get up the same hill, and the games and challenges associated with each side are cool, too! The RB has such big in-game implications… and I really love that. Stakes are raising. Consistently great locations… interesting twists on your events… I really enjoyed this leg!
