How are the different teams on The Amazing Race shaping up? What's caused them to move ahead or drop behind? And where will they end up next?
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The teams of The Amazing Race had a rather straightforward route in Episode 2. From the village of Songwe, the teams had to make their way to Paris. There, they needed to climb the Eiffel Tower, spot the flag atop the Arc de Triomphe, which is where the pit stop was located. This appeared to be nowhere near as challenging as Episode 1, but several teams blew these elementary tasks spectacularly. Episode 2 featured bickering, fighting between teams, fighting within teams, alliances, and lots of anger. With that being said, let’s see how the teams did.
First Place The Working Moms, Pat & Brenda Previous Standing: Fifth Place
Excellent job by the mothers. They seemed to be the only team that went after the Fast Forward, and it paid off big time. I have no idea how big a lead they have over the other teams, but with a big enough head start, they could be in the top three for the next several episodes. A true physical challenge could still be trouble for them, and I feel one is coming.
Second Place The Life Partners, Joe & Bill Previous Standing: Second Place
These guys surprise me. They have arguably the best communication out of all the teams, and they are certainly one of the most intelligent. Joe quickly spotted that they were the strongest team in the three team alliance which also included The Lawyers and the Separated Parents, and it was a no-brainer to break ties and go at it on their own. Bill also surprised me by quickly scaling the Eiffel Tower by foot. This team is a serious contender, no question about it.
Third Place The Lawyers, Rob & Brennan Previous Standing: First Place
The Lawyers got off to a glorious start by going far out of their way to find a museum that was just a few feet from them. Then, they somehow found themselves in the middle of an alliance, which quickly dissipated when Joe & Bill figured out that the Lawyers would be of little use to them. That being said, the Lawyers are a major threat to win the game, with their physical skills and high intelligence. They should be among the top of the leader board until the end.
Forth Place The Separated Parents, Frank & Margarita Pervious Standing: Third Place
Frank needs to stop being so bossy and Margarita needs to stop being such a pushover. I believe they will continue to slip in the standings due to their lack of teamwork and patience with each other. Like the Lawyers, Joe & Bill quickly dumped them and broke their alliance, and with good reason. If the infighting continues, they could be gone as soon as next week.
Fifth Place The Fraternity Brother, Kevin & Drew Previous Standing: Ninth Place
Big improvement for the brothers of fun. Kevin & Drew are very smart, and after some teamwork problems in episode one, the Frat Pack made a huge jump in the standings. They didn’t get a lot of time on the camera this week, but I believe that was done to throw us off as to who was really the farthest behind. The Frat Brothers are by no means out of the woods yet, but my original picks to win are going to hang on.
Sixth Place The Grandparents, David & Margaretta Previous Standing: Seventh Place
What was I thinking picking these two to finish last? Episode 1, I thought for certain they had lost when they went far out of the way looking for the Fast Forward only to find that those damn lawyers had already got it. But they survived then, and they survive now. Although they walked to the museum instead of taking a car, they still managed to place ahead of four other teams, and they even managed to jump one spot in the standings! I’m just happy that they proved me wrong, like I suspected they would, and I hope they continue to surprise me.
Seventh Place The Engaged Couple, Paul & Amie Previous Standing: Eighth Place
Forget about Temptation Island! The Amazing Race is the reality show of choice to break up couples! Paul is getting increasingly frustrated with Amie, and now it’s really started to show. He’s yelling at her, saying that he’s going to quit, and kicking historical landmarks. Maybe he’s just got a short temper. Amazingly, they climbed in the standings, in part due to the self-destruction of the Dating Couple. They could very well continue to climb the leader board, especially with the Grandparents in front of them and the Family from Hell behind them.
Eighth Place The Mother/Daughter, Nancy & Emily Previous Standing: Tenth Place
Wanted: One spoiled child and her do-gooder mother to make complete asses of themselves on national TV. Contact CBS. I mean, where do I begin with these two? The mother tries, bless her heart, and it’s obvious she’s doing it all to impress her daughter, who’s as snotty and impatient as they come. Her choice of getting within twenty feet of a friggin wild Rhino was not perhaps a good choice. At least Emily showed genuine concern for her mother’s safety, until she got out of the car to take the picture of the Rhino herself. The other teams who were required to photograph the animals snapped the pictures will standing through the sunroof in their car. “LOOK, WATER BUFFALO! *CLICK* LET’S GO!” Not these two. They stop the car, get out of the car, and get very close to an angry, ready-to-charge Rhino. Emily needs to calm down, because when it was all over, they had climbed two places in the standing and narrowly avoided elimination for the second straight event. They won’t make it much longer.
Ninth Place The Dating Couple, Lenny & Karyn Previous Standing: Forth Place
Lenny blew it big time. Upon reaching the Eiffel Tower, Lenny climbed the tower and looked for the flag, gave up after a short time, climbed it again, and determined that Notre Dame was the pit stop without any real proof of it. They went to Notre Dame, figured out that wasn’t the spot, and Lenny started to cry. They went back to the Tower, Lenny finally spotted the flag with the help of Emily, and they barely beat the Teachers to the pit stop. If Lenny is going to keep this kind of stuff up, they’ll be gone very soon.
Tenth Place – ELIMINATED The Teachers, Kim & Leslie
You know, someone emailed me to respond to the comment I made about Teachers in general being “dumb.” The person claimed to be know Kim & Leslie, told me they were very smart and that they would surprise me. That they certainly did, because I had no idea they would be eliminated this fast. But I most say I’m pleased that they were. They were both very snotty and arrogant, and now the whole world knows it. They tried to bully their way into lead, but they lacked the mental capacity to actually search the base of the Eiffel Tower before climbing it in search of the route marker. Then, with the pit stop just a few feet away, they argued with their taxi driver over a small amount of change, and the Dating Couple finished ahead of them. I was indeed wrong, because these two weren’t dumb, they were stupid.
