The Amazing Race 9: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, Episode 3: Pool Parity

Honestly, I really don’t have anything to say about Monica on the roadblock or about her in this episode in general. I just liked the picture.

Every once in a while there are issues that I need to comment on but don’t feel strongly enough about them to fit into one of the three categories. Oddly enough, there are two of them this episode.

There seems to be a lot of uproar about the matrioshka nesting dolls challenge, and random tasks in general. These tasks have cost more than one team the race. I can think of the Gaghans and the red coffee bean task, the New York boys in the “find the scarab in the sand” task, and the hay bale unrolling task in particular.

No, I’m not crazy about such a task when it’s the roadblock (meaning the team must complete it) at the end of the leg, but in this case, it was one choice on a detour. Teams probably should not have chosen it, although it remains to be seen if it will cost them either way. That means that the choice of tasks is part of their overall game strategy. Are they willing to bust their butts on the trolleys or rely on luck? Not that it really made that much of a difference, because it didn’t come right before a pit stop. Which leads us to…

The “to be continued” leg. As a viewer, these are frustrating, but I think it adds to the drama of the race. I’m all for twists when they make things more interesting without making things unfair – and this definitely qualifies. Not to mention that the looks on their faces are always priceless!

The Good:

Boo!: One of the funniest moments ever in reality TV happened on this leg, when BJ & Tyler jumped out of the grass to scare The Frat Boys. The fact that it happened WHILE The Frat Boys were talking about how they didn’t trust the Hippies was one of those perfect moments that you never seem to have a camera around for. Thankfully, they did. Jumping on the Frinks’ car was almost as good.

Hippies: If you want an example of why the Hippies are my favorite team this season, look no further than the cathedral. It’s like they’ve been reading my columns. (Remember, my columns are so important they have the power to go back in time to before the taping and change history). They’re racing balls-out, making smart decisions, and being competitive, yet they still have time to have fun, help out another team, or, in this case, stop for a moment and admire the scenery.

Not Dead Yet: The Frat Boys aren’t dead to me yet. I don’t find them nearly as irritating as some of the other writers, but then, I’m male. I find them obnoxiously charming, in an “I’m glad I don’t know them” kind of way. But then, I put a gratuitous picture of a hot blonde in a speedo at the top of my column. Who am I to judge?

Ten Points for Effort: I have to give credit to Wanda & Desiree (or is it Desiree & Wanda? I can never remember which order the names are in. Ah well, no sane person really cares, I’m sure.) and Ray & Yolanda for gutting it out and finishing the roadblock. However, this leads me to…

The Bad:

Minus Several Million for Common Sense: OK, you’re at a huge swimming and diving facility. The clue says “Who wants to take the plunge?” Hands up, who doesn’t immediately think the roadblock has something to do with swimming or diving? Those of you with your hands up, please beat yourself unconscious. Thanks.

What did these teams think, that maybe they were going to be drinking refreshing Nestea products? Or maybe they thought it said “splunge,” which as we all know, means, “it's a great-idea-but-possibly-not-and-I'm-not-being-indecisive.” How this would relate to The Amazing Race, I’m not sure, but it makes as much sense as thinking the task wouldn’t be water-related.

Come on, teams. To win The Amazing Race you can’t make stupid decisions like this. On any other leg, this probably would have cost you the race. Teams have lost for a lot less, especially on a roadblock.