Thanks Dalton Ross!
10/19/2009 07:21 PM
EW TV Review: "The Amazing Race"
By: Dalton Ross - Entertainment Weekly
When "The Amazing Race" first came on the air back in 2001, it was with a mountain of hype behind it. Fresh off the success of "Survivor," the folks at CBS were sure they had their next exotic reality giant. Then the show had the misfortune of debuting right around the attacks on September 11, and a program about travel on airplanes suddenly wasn't the escapist entertainment fare viewers were looking for. The show was never officially canceled, but in those early years, you never quite new when it would come back on. The network tried it during summer, and they trotted it out whenever another show needed to be taken off the air.
"The Amazing Race" was on life support, and even die hard fans probably wanted it put out of its misery when they staged a truly unfortunate family edition. But a funny thing happened on the way to the ratings graveyard. Slowly, buzz began to build, ratings began to pickup, and here we are now in the show's 15th season. And the newest installment has everything that has made the program so popular, even if it took awhile. You have an often visually stunning spectacle with teams visiting places like Cambodia and the Persian Gulf and taking part in local culture and customs. You have quirky challenges that are sure to entertain by unnerving even the most common of couples. And you have colorful teams to root for and against.
This season, the heroes were Justin and his partner with Asberger's, Zev, who came in first place in one leg, only to lose one of their passports and therefore be eliminated. But equally likeable are Harlem Globetrotters Flight Time and Big Easy. Sure, they're probably there just to promote their basketball team, but so what? They're Globetrotters! On the flip side are the grating Lance and Keri. You always need a good pair of heels to root against, and they definitely fit the bill. The only bummer about this show is that it is almost impossible to DVR since football always makes it start and end late. But I shouldn’t complain. After the way things started back in 2001, I should just be happy that this race is still on.
VIDEO HERE