The Biggest Loser 2, Episode 2: Letters from Home

In summary, the series focuses on two teams of overweight contestants and their competitive struggles to lose weight and, in the process, regain control of their lives. Challenges and temptations bar their way to a nice prize. When it’s all over, The Bigger Loser will be the biggest winner.

Last week, the teams had to grab ping-pong balls in a zero gravity plane, and Ryan had trouble with it. In a weigh-in that was as close as possible, Suzy pulled it out at the last moment and the women won. Ruben’s effort level was questioned by his teammates and he was sent home.

One thing that came out of the last episode, the “week” was actually ten days long. So, for those of you who can’t quite seem to lose 28 pounds in a week – take heart, they were “cheating” on the timeframe. Mind you, that’s still an impressive number for a month, never mind ten days!

These are the contestants in this year’s show:

THE WOMEN (Blue Team, coach Bob):

• Andrea, the soccer mom
• Jen, the med student
• Kathryn, the attorney
• Ryan, the preacher’s daughter
• Shannon, the diva
• Suzanne, the bride to be
• Suzy, the single girl

THE MEN (Red Team, coach Jillian):

• Jeff, the doctor
• Mark, the cop
• Matt, the ex-athlete
• Nick, the comedian
• Pete, the devoted husband
• Seth, the new dad

Eliminated, in order:

1. Reuben, the single guy

The show opens for real with a Temptation, and it’s a doozey. The contestants are all given a plate of tempting food, and a letter from home. Anyone who ate their food got to read their letter. They had 15 minutes to decide what to do. This is a real toughie! Despite taunting from Mark, med student Jen can’t even look at the card and diva Shannon is weeping openly. In fact, most everyone is fighting back ocular moisture. However – all are strong and no one falters. Preacher’s daughter Ryan sums it up best by saying, “It was hard, but I wasn’t tempted. I’m here for a reason and I’m going to see it to completion.” Matt adds, “All the people who wrote these letters know why we came here, man.” Way to go, gang!

Trainer Bob admits that the temptations are tough, but it prepares them for life in the outside world. And after the break, he tells his Blue Team that this week’s challenge will require balance, speed and agility. Lawyer Kathryn is having some difficulty because she has a bad ankle that precludes her doing a lot of the exercises.

In fact, both teams are put through drills designed toward these traits. On the Red Team, Dr. Jeff admits he needs help with balance, because he has none. However, Jillian notes that, “Nick is a renegade. I’ll help him whenever he needs help with whatever he needs, and then if it starts to be a problem, I’ll address it then.” Myself, I don’t understand why he’s missing out on, literally, the opportunity of his lifetime. Not only is he missing out on priceless training time, but he’s also making himself an outsider on his team and therefore, an easy choice the next time the men face the Eviction Room.

It’s time for series host Carolyn Rhea to be a big meanie – she asks Shannon if she misses her daughter. Shannon doesn’t fall for it, she gives a good answer and we move on to the challenge at hand. Carolyn tells them that since they did so well on the last Temptation, today’s winning team will get their letters. Cheers all around! Additionally… the winning team has an extra 24 hours to lose weight before the next weigh-in!

We see the challenge is walking across a sturdy balance beam built about five feet over water. It may be about thirty yards long, I’m guessing. If anyone falls off, they have to swim back to the start point and try again. The winning team is the first to get their whole team across. It’s not nearly as narrow as the Survivor: Vanuatu beam, but as we’ve seen so many times in Reality TV, many men simply cannot walk a balance beam. The outcome seems pre-ordained to the cynics in the viewing audience. However, these are two never-say-die groups; so let’s see how it works out.

The women have an extra player, so they have to sit someone out. Volunteers are solicited. (“Solicited”… like “solicitor,” a British lawyer, get it?) Since attorney Kathryn is injured, it seems like a no-brainer, but she insists she’s ready to go. Bride-to-be Suzanne is upset, since Kathryn had been unable to work out like the rest of them, yet wanted to risk the whole team’s future. Fortunately, cooler heads prevail and Kathryn is indeed the one not playing. Wow, bad move Kathryn, your team now believes you’re not a good team player!

The competition starts. Seth and Suzy are up first, and new-dad Seth runs across so quickly, it’s like he’s headed for a fresh diaper. Suzy freezes up, and Matt passes her to cross next. Suzy finally gets there shortly after Matt, and the rest for both teams pretty much follow at similar paces, except the men were always one body ahead. For example, Nick falls in, but Jen follows him three seconds later, so the lead is maintained.