We started off this episode of "The Amazing Race" with the news of an equalizer! Since the teams were all in the Seychelles, there's not a bunch of flights going out of the country. So while some of the teams were forced to wait, there were a few funny developments:
- Following their decision to leave all their bags behind last leg, Steve & Allie resorted to trying to convince locals to sell them clothing.
- Louie & Michael have formed some sort of "family" alliance with Brent & Caite. Caite has decided to call the "the two daddies," and I'm not going to describe it any further than that.
- Did anyone catch that Brent said "unanimous" this time? He's learned!
Upon arriving at their next destination in Penang, Malaysia, the next challenge was pretty simple: drive to the snake temple and get a flag. Brothers Dan & Jordan had the Malaysia version of Kyle Busch behind the wheel, so he managed to pass everyone on the way to the temple. However, they then committed an "Amazing Race" cardinal rule violation and let him go. What are you guys thinking? (On another note, wouldn't it have been great if the teams had been forced to do something with the snakes?)
The choices this week couldn't be more different: haul incense up stairs or try to balance a flag on your head and walk 120 feet. It's balance vs. brawn! Unsurprisingly, five out of the six teams decided to pick "brawn" -- it's safer, and potentially less embarrassing.
However, Jet & Cord decided to go against the grain and make their first smart decision in a few weeks on the show. In picking the flag balance, they managed to get the trick down in a matter of seconds and continue on to their next task -- a speed bump. In it, they had to pick out the right sort of tea and hand it to a "guru" sitting on a bunch. Yes, the challenge was ridiculously easy -- but Speed Bumps always are. (Anyone remember the Saunabus from last season?) The real shocker is that the cowboys managed to go from last in the last leg to first this time around thanks to one simple choice.
The temple task, however, was tough for many reasons. Carol & Brandy arrived first followed by Brent & Caite, but they quickly realized that hauling up the incense rolls was a horribly tough challenge.
As for the other three teams, it was hard just getting there. Dan & Jordan broke another cardinal rule and decided to bail on their taxi, simply because traffic was bad and they thought they could work. Note to the brothers -- traffic can get better. You still have to walk. Steve & Allie followed suit, whereas the detectives made the smart move and stayed in the car. Then, the brothers and the father / daughter team ended up getting lost anyway.
While all of the madness was going on among the other teams, Jet & Cord arrived to the roadblock first and had an opportunity to do what was apparently a "traditional practice:" busting coconuts. Thankfully, this time there was no hilarious guy telling them they "did not collect all the coconuts." After finding one with the colorful center, they then had to participate in some un-Cowboy-like arts and crafts in putting together a decorative piece to give to a guru in the water. From there, it was smooth sailing to the pit stop as the cowboys became the first team in "Race" history to finish one leg last, do a speed bump, and come in first the next week.
Meanwhile, Brent & Caite finished the other (bad) detour first but ran into some unfortunate traffic problems. Thanks to this, both Carol & Brandy and Michael & Louie leaped ahead. The lesbian couple had no trouble with the roadblock, and Louie somehow managed to find a colorful coconut on his second smash. They were second and third, respectively, at the pit stop, while Brent & Caite were relegated to fourth.
Then, things managed to get somewhat interesting. Steve & Allie thought it would be easier to just go and do the balancing detour, but they gave up before they really tried. Why wouldn't you even try, since it could feasibly keep you in the race? Therefore, they were several minutes behind by the time they got back to the incense, and (of course) the fightin' brothers got a decent-sized lead.
But -- could it be -- the brothers had the stop for gas! Could this slow them down? Not really, since this was really just a ploy to create drama since it was fairly obvious who would be going home. Even Dan & Jordan messing up their coconut offering (and getting stuck in traffic) couldn't slow them down enough.
This exit was really a shame, since in many ways I thought Steve & Allie had a bunch of a potential in terms of storytelling. Unfortunately, the show never really gave us enough time to examine their relationship, which is what much of the show is really about. Ironically, this team managed to a do the opposite of Jet & Cord and go from last to first.
Next week, the teams head to Singapore, and Dan & Jordan apparently freak out over heights
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