'The Amazing Race' - 'Huger Than Huge' Season Finale Recap
(S16E12) Aha! That's why 'The Amazing Race' seasons always seem so short! Although they pack in a whirlwind tour of the world, we're talking only twelve episodes and that's all she wrote. Even in these days of shorter television seasons and oddly spaced out seasons, we're not talking an epic run.Yet, each season in itself is indeed an epic run despite the number of episodes. The countries, the challenges, the relationships of the teams ... definitely epic! Going into the finale, we have cowboys, brothers and models. Judging on Internet reaction, the cowboys (who are also brothers) are the fan favorites, the other two teams not so much. So, who's bringing home the million? Read on.
In previous weeks I've made it no secret that my own favorite team for the win is Jet and Cord, the cowboys. They've been delightful to watch, pleasant, well-mannered and they can tackle just about anything thrown their way. Of the other two teams, I think the young brothers, Dan and Jordan, have run a good race. For me, the drawback with them has been the drama. I don't want to see tears weekly from any team. Man up, bros! Caite can stop her tears, too. Um ... woman up, Caite!
I don't get everything I always want in life and tonight's finale is one of those things to keep me in check with reality. The worst case scenario for me would be a Brent and Caite win. I just don't like them. They did nothing tonight to change my mind. I'm hoping that Caite calling the cab driver a "dumbass" is what sealed their fate.
But I'm getting ahead of myself here. This was an unusual leg in that all of the real action happened on United States soil. Well, asphalt, too. At the airport, bound for San Francisco, Dan and Jordan arrived six hours behind the other teams. It didn't matter as there was still a long wait for their flight. Jordan went and did something which really gained them nothing but friction and bad feelings. He set his bag next to Caite and Brent's bags and declared he was second in line for tickets. All that did was tick off the cowboys.
The real strategic move of the brothers came during the flight when they asked if they could go to the first class empty seats. Both of the other teams were sleeping and we ended up seeing "you snooze, you lose" in practical action. No one got upset with them because no one even saw them get off the plane! That one move put them in first place for the rest of the leg.
While ascending the side of the Coit Tower looked pretty impressive, the killer challenge was the one at Lucasfilm and Industrial Light and Magic. My inner geek squealed with delight as armed 'Star Wars' characters escorted the teams into the virtual reality based challenge. That has got to be THE coolest challenge ever on the show! Oh, true, it didn't expand my mind by exposing me to foreign cultures or anything. But, darn it all, that was so cool. I want to play!
The shame of that whole challenge is that neither Cord nor Jet picked up on why Jordan kept standing spinning. Had they picked up on that, they might have had a chance. Instead, it gave Brent and Caite the opportunity to catch up to them. Thankfully, Brent and Caite left their stuff back at Lucasfilm and had to return to retrieve it. After all, you can't pay a dumbass cab driver without money, right?
Dan and Jordan, although not always the strongest team, may very well have the biggest show fan aboard. In what was the second strategic genius move, it turns out Jordan has written down the whole order of the race. Since they more often than not have some sort of memory puzzle of the race as the final task, he was wise to do so. That sealed it for them as they whizzed through the puzzle without hesitation.
With the exception of a probably heavily edited piece about Dan and Jordan having serious woes finding a cab and tried to make it appear that Jet and Cord were closer than they were. So, in the end, it was Dan and Jordan in first place. While they haven't been my favorite team all season, they were far from my least favorite. I feel they've grown a lot and I'm genuinely happy for Jordan as he wanted the win so much.
The cowboys came in second. Sigh. However, the consummate gentlemen they are, they acted graciously and politely. Yeah, they did get a dig in about how they ran the race with their character and integrity intact. But then you have the anti-character and integrity -- Brent and Caite's third place finish with the reaction of Carole and Brandy.
Oh my. Yet another first for the show. Caite annoys me to no end, but the behavior of Brandy was the rudest I've ever seen at the finish line. She did her best to spoil everything. How dare she act like that during the finale? It set off Caite, which wasn't pretty either. Heck, even her partner Carol looked embarrassed.
Now, if 'The Amazing Race' had a reunion bit like 'Survivor' and 'Big Brother' -- that would be great fodder. But it brought down the entire finale when I think back to all of the other teams acting so pleasant, win or lose, over the years. Shame on you, Brandy. Go to your room and don't appear on national television ever again.
| Caite | |
|---|---|
| Brent | |
| Carol | |
| Brandy |

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