The Amazing Race 10: The Finish Line, Episode 5

Peggy Bunker says that Jon Weiss is back in the house this week! She asks for folks to call in to chat. Jon says there was a lot of bickering on the show this week and that Peter is really starting to get on his nerves. Jon has no idea why Peter didn’t bring a tool kit to work on Sarah’s knee. He says that maybe Peter wasn’t allowed to bring it, but he wants to know.

We quickly go to Jon’s Ringmaster Recap of the episode. You know, the relentless pum-pum-pum-pum music in the background of his Recaps is getting pretty darn annoying. I want new background music!

Peggy says she thinks a lot of people were glad last night wasn’t an elimination episode because so many people like David & Mary. Jon thinks the new thirty-minute penalty if the “marked” team doesn’t win the next leg is a good new twist. Peggy thinks David & Mary warm a lot of people’s hearts. Jon says they’re regular people and they really appreciate the experiences they’re having on the race. They’re fun-loving and really seem to appreciate each other’s company. Jon wants to see them go further. Peggy sarcastically says that she’d like to see Mary speak up a little more. She does a quick imitation of Mary yelling for David. Peggy finishes by saying that Mary has really won her over.

Peggy now tells us that she and Jon are going to have a couple of internet bloggers who really know the race on the show to chat about it. Hey! They should ask some internet journalists who cover the race too! (Hint, hint) We now get to see the “scariest moment of the week.” We see the teams wrapping up and carrying the crocodiles.

Peggy goes on a bit of a rant. She says that if there was ever an opportunity to see a team wrestle crocodiles, she wanted to see Tyler & James do it! Jon just thinks it was lame that they didn’t really have to wrestle crocodiles. But what Peggy really wanted to see was Tyler & James, shirtless, wrestling the crocs! She asks if we want to see them do some art piece or getting in there and wrestling crocodiles? Same for Erwin & Godwin! They started the art first. They’re made of muscle! Jon says that if you just looked at that pattern you should realize that the art would have taken too much time. The crocodiles were obviously the faster choice. It was the Moms that went for the crocodiles!

We now get a call from Mark in Washington. He says that he also wants David & Mary to hang in the race. He thinks Mary’s a real fighter and they’re hungry to win the race. But his question is about Peter. Mark thinks he’s kind of a wimp of a man and wants to know if Peggy and Jon think Sarah is going to dump him at the end of the race. Peggy thinks everyone’s wondering about that. Or if Peter might dump Sarah? Jon wants to know why Peter doesn’t ever help her or carry her bag if it makes sense to do so. Peggy now takes us to a clip from this week’s episode showcasing Peter acting like an ass with Sarah in various ways. But at least he likes how he deals with things. So, I guess everything’s good. Yeesh.

Peggy and Jon laugh over the couple’s bickering. Jon says that Sarah is right, you have to work as a team. Peggy just thinks Peter’s not really helping her. Jon brings up Sarah crawling on the rice paddy while Peter ran ahead. And the same sort of situation keeps coming up with this team.

We now welcome Eric Goldman, an Amazing Race blogger, by phone. Eric notes that all teams have their moments, but he thinks this race might well end their relationship. Jon thinks it’s likely too. Eric doesn’t think there’s a current clear, front-running team right now. He thinks Dustin & Kandice have surprised people with how competitively they’re doing. Rob & Kimberly have a lot of dysfunction, but they’re running a solid race right now.

Peggy says that on some races, a team with a bit of dysfunction can actually do very well. Jon brings up Jonathan & Victoria (who just had a baby) and Lake & Michelle. Jon says, in the studio, they seemed respectful and the couples blamed editing, but Jon’s not so sure. I think editing can emphasize aspects of your relationship and behavior, but it can’t force you to do too much – even with the “creative” editing some shows do. For example, no amount of editing could insert the scene in which Jonathan shoved Victoria, earning him a Reality TV Hall of Shame Moment. Blaming the editing is an easy out.

Peggy and Jon turn back to the subject of David & Mary. Jon was glad to see that they didn’t give up this episode. It was dark when they arrived at the Pit Stop, so they must have arrived pretty late. Peggy notes that when you see a team arrive at the Pit Stop in the dark, you know it’s a bad sign. Jon says the one thing you don’t want to see is a team give up – but it’s happened. On his season, Dave & Jeff never even made it to the final Pit Stop and they were one of the last three teams.