Finished watching Episode 1 this morning, ended up being late for a work meeting but I slipped in unnoticed.
My Ep 1. Thoughts (trying to remain as spoiler-free as possible):Tasks - the spice task seemed a bit anticlimactic for a first task (rappelling, anyone?) but yay for getting out of Australia. The roadblock looked to be on the easy side, par for the course for a first leg. I don't know how well I would've done, but seeing that only one racer was taken out due to speed, and the others who didn't finish on their first attempt for safety reasons but only needed one more attempt. For the detour, the date task looked ridiculous, especially in comparison with the laundry task which was just about being detailed. The sphinx task looked pointless, and I could see this being a spot of over-analysis. It seemed to be a total crapshoot, since, unless the producers left something out, there was no visible answer to the riddle they gave.
Weirdly, I noticed an editing error at the sphinx task - Kelly/Georgia finished first, but the caption read "currently in 2nd" before the description of the pit stop. After the description, it corrected itself for "currently in 1st." Wonder what that was all about.
Finally, loving the music choices and dramatic, sweeping shots of Ouarzazate. This is what we came for!
Thoughts On Our First Batch of Teams (in random order, so as to not spoil those who have yet to watch it):Jodie and Claire - the adorable older lady team that seems to have completely disappeared from US TAR, and they did great! Claire killed the roadblock. They seem to be keeping up with the crowd and have a positive attitude.
Tammy and Vincent - I was surprised by how much they dominated this leg, physically, and consistently being towards the front of the pack. They're a team to watch. Also appreciate that they don't seem to take themselves too seriously.
Jake and Holly - A team I thought I would despise but they came off as really likeable. I was surprised at how much of a disadvantage Jake had at the roadblock; goes to show that sometimes being big and physical can work against you.
Mori and Pako - A cute couple, seem to be having a good time and getting along with the others as well as being consistent with tasks. It was kind of odd that their relationship was highlighted when they got to Morocco; we've had plenty of LGBT+ contestants/couples race in non-LGBT+ friendly countries and it's never been an issue, why start now?
Paul and Rachel - I really disliked this team. At first they came across as smug, then as the leg went on they became insufferable. By they, I mean Rachel - Paul seemed cool - but they seemed totally unprepared for the race and I agree with you all, Rachel's roadblock penalty was practically nothing.
Kelly and Georgia - I really liked this team! We saw a lot of them, and I loved the fact that they attempted to learn Arabic. They both seem really intelligent but not cocky about it (yet) and provide good commentary.
Tiffany and Cynthia - Aunt and niece, a first for any edition of TAR, and I liked them. They have an interesting backstory, and I liked how patient and polite Tiffany was especially in a place where many foreigners get exasperated quickly.
Chelsea and Jamus - Props for giving the date task a go, but I wasn't really feeling this team. I do love the fact that even though they're in a romantic relationship, during their shot in the opening credits Chelsea looks like she hates Jamus
Flick and Gabby - Wow, these two are really in it to win it! I liked how Flick looked like a ninja at the roadblock. They seem to be quite competent and fun racers.
Fliss and Tottie - We barely saw these two, which doesn't bode well for them; they seemed quiet, and the most forgettable of the group. Wonder how they'll fare moving forward.
Also, I am wondering what they're going to do with the opening credits...how long will they be if they have to include all 20 teams?
Looking forward to the next episode. Hopefully the team shown struggling in the preview is a red herring from the editors, otherwise it'd be a foregone conclusion. And even though not all Muslims speak conversational Arabic, I am really curious to see how the Middle Eastern Mates team does in Morocco.
