The Amazing Race Recap
December 8, 2009
BoxOfficeProphets.com
I am getting a bit misty that the last leg of one the best seasons of Amazing Race is here. I will make sure to get it out of my system while Phil gives us a recap of this season's highs, lows and drama. I hope that everyone said a prayer to your respective deity that brothers Sam and Dan will not win. Amen. All right, here we go.
The episode starts back in Prague (the city...not the country, Dan and Sam) and it's déjà vu all over again with Meghan and Cheyne in first place. Of the 11 legs this race, they have won six of them. That is pure, unadulterated domination, folks. It's 11:10 a.m. and Meghan and Cheyne learn that the final destination city is Las Vegas. Cue up Katy Perry's "Waking up in Vegas" and the producers oblige. The teams have to find the Graceland Wedding Chapel and get their next clue from...you guessed it...an Elvis impersonator. I wish I could put some money down on how many Vegas clichés they will pack into this hour.
Meghan and Cheyne get the unfortunate news that the next flight is at 6:40 p.m., which means all three teams will likely be on the same plane as long as last place Brian and Ericka get to the airport in time. The producers have learned their lesson from season one when the final leg essentially had only two teams in it because Bill and Joe were a full day behind them and actually had a message sent to them in Alaska that the race was over. They wouldn't let that happen again and haven't.
Sam and Dan head to the airport and begin to hypothesize whether the final team is the Globetrotters or Brian and Ericka. Both teams seem genuinely shocked that the married couple edged out the Globetrotters. This brings me to question how they spend their pitstop break because we have seen footage of teams socializing during the break. This is the second time this season that the airport is the venue for the teams to catch up with one another.
Sam and Dan finally offer up their own taxi cab confession to Brian and Ericka for jacking their cab two legs ago. Of course, the brothers say that it was the cabbie's fault and not theirs. That's right, because the cabbie offered himself more money to take Sam and Dan over Brian and Ericka. Way to own up to your squirrelly game play, guys.
All the teams are on the plane and waiting to unload, when the producers put more money in Katy Perry's pocket by playing "Waking up in Vegas" again. They dash off the plane and are neck and neck heading to the chapel. All the teams get there and join in with Elvis on an unharmonious rendition of Amazing Grace. The producers missed a chance here to rework the song as "Amazing Race, How sweet the sound" but what do I know.
If all the teams are this closely together the entire episode, it is going to be a tense 45 minutes. Brian and Ericka's cabbie thinks he knows a quicker way to the Mandalay Bay, so they break off from the others. It's risky but it could be rewarding.
At the Mandalay Bay, a Roadblock awaits them, which requires them to go the roof and rappel face first down 62 stories. This is an insane-looking task. Brian and Ericka do arrive first and given Brian's professed fear of heights, it looks like Ericka will be playing the part of Spider-Man...er...Spider-Woman (as she dubs herself in the challenge). She begins her descent as Cheyne and Meghan arrive and with an anxious twinge in his voice, Cheyne accepts the challenge. Ericka is about halfway down when Cheyne starts. The brothers are there and Sam heads to the roof for the challenge.
Ericka reaches the bottom and their clue directs them to go to the Mirage. Clearly, this episode is brought us by the fine folks at the Las Vegas Tourism Bureau. Cheyne is inching his way and Sam is keeping a much faster pace. Despite feeling good so far this leg, Brian and Ericka understand to not get cocky because the race can change easily.
Cheyne reaches the ground and admits that he did it with his eyes shut - not out of arrogance but fear. Sam is only minutes behind him, so this is one tight race. Brian and Ericka get to the Mirage and we cut to a commercial for the Beatles Love Cirque du Soleil show. My bad, the Cirque show is the site of the task. Teams have to get in a bungee harness and their teammate must launch them into the air for them to grab a bouquet of flowers for their clue. Ericka is in the harness but they keep missing. Meghan and Cheyne arrive and Meghan is bouncing for them.
Ericka gets increasingly frustrated as the brothers arrive, too. To top it off, Meghan makes the grab after only a couple of attempts. This sends Ericka flying (sorry, but pun intended), demanding that they switch places because Brian is taller. He may be, but there is some strength need to get the momentum going. Personally, I think this was a foolish move based upon emotions and not thinking about it. Now they have to kill time switching roles while Sam and Dan are already starting.
The next clue is a bit of a riddle and asks "What is the most famous casino in the country of Monaco?" Meghan and Cheyne ask a cabbie who tells them with hesitancy that it's the Venetian. The viewers have already been informed by Phil that the hotel is the Monte Carlo. Oopsie.
Brian gets one turn bouncing and then Sam and Dan grab their flowers and the clue. Our married couple decides to switch back. This unnecessary change reminds me of Maria and Tiffany's indecision and multiple task changes that were their doom. I hope they don't suffer the same fate because I need them in this race to beat the brothers.
Unfortunately for those with the same distaste for them, Sam and Dan borrow the cabbie's phone to call the Mandalay Bay (or Monterrey Bay as Sam calls it...even though they were just there). Brian and Ericka finish the task and both of them know the answer is the Monte Carlo. Meghan and Cheyne are still heading to the Venetian.
The brothers get to the Monte Carlo and are faced with the final challenge. Teams have to count out $1 million in casino chips. This is a pretty straightforward task but it will be very time-consuming. I am a bit disappointed in not only the fact that the brothers are in first place but also that the show strayed from its norm where the final task is a geography memory test. As evidenced by Sam's Mandalay Bay error not five minutes before, among other slip ups this season, the brothers probably would still be sitting at the Monte Carlo today if the task hinged upon geopgraphy.
Meghan and Cheyne show up at the Venetian and the workers inform them that the answer is the Monte Carlo. Brian and Ericka arrive at the poker chip task and I am sure they had flashbacks to the Gold Exchange detour where Ericka proudly declared that "My American education's dumbed me down to use a calculator for everything." This could be trouble for them.
Meghan and Cheyne are finally there. As you would expect, Sam and Dan are bickering with the occasional curt outburst. There is just a whole lot of chips clacking together, sorting, and stacking. Brian and Ericka and Meghan and Cheyne both seem to be working well and efficiently. All three are theoretically finished, having their chips tallied at the same time. Meghan and Cheyne are correct, but both the others are not. The golden children have once again overcome a setback (albeit a self-imposed one) and appear back in familiar territory – first place. The clue directs them to their next stop on Las Vegas Hotel tour 2009 – the MGM Grand, where they have to go to a suite with Mr. Las Vegas, Wayne Newton, waiting to tell them the final destination.
Learning from their Venetian/Monte Carlo error, Meghan and Cheyne get a worker to confirm that Newton is Mr. Las Vegas. Sam and Dan redo their chip count and get it right on the second try. Alas, Brian and Ericka are also in familiar territory – last place and struggling through a task.
Meghan and Cheyne find Wayne first who tells them that the finish line is at his house. With a danke "Cheyne" (wheee that was fun), they are out of there. As a non-Las Vegas resident or visitor, I assume that his home is a destination a cabbie would know about. If not this is a cruel twist. As they leave, Sam and Dan show up and find the suite but wouldn't you know, the guys embarrass themselves by actually having to ask what his name is. This speaks volumes about the brothers' poor game play and the relevance of one Mr. Wayne Newton.
Apparently, Newton's home is a sprawling ranch and they have to find the correct entrance. Quick cuts give us the illusion of drama. Rounding the corner to the mat are Meghan and Cheyne. As Meghan and Cheyne sprint to the mat, they receive awkward high fives from all the eliminated teams, except of course the team that didn't even get out of L.A...hold one while I look up their names...Eric and Lisa. Apparently, they didn't merit a pity plane ticket from the producers.
Phil gives them congratulations and we have the winners of this season in the form of a team that ruled this race from the first leg when they finished first to being first place on the final mat. Let this be a lesson to future racers; keep it together for 90% of the race and you increase your chances of winning. Aside from Cheyne's passive-aggressive hissy fit in Sweden, Meghan and Cheyne were composed nearly the entire time and look where it got them.
Dan and Sam show up for a second place finish and are happy they got to race to the end. Probably would have been happier with a check for a million dollars, but who knows with them. Brian and Ericka run to the mat next. We don't actually see them get the thumbs up for counting their chips, so I wonder if they got the "report to finish line because we already have a winner" message from the producers.
Ericka gives a very touching speech that she hopes that her family that has issues with Brian because he is white got to see how that he should be judged for his character and not the color of his skin. Based upon how he acted in stressful situations during the race, Brian's character is firmly intact as he was one of the most standup people to be on this show. Thus concludes a very special episode of The Amazing Race.
While I'm not shocked at the winning team because of the aforementioned domination, this final episode offered the manic, tense and fast-paced race that it maintained all season. Like with the current season of Survivor, despite being quite a few years old, the season delivered in a big way and I will happily declare this my favorite season of The Amazing Race, a series that I haven't missed a single episode of in its 15 seasons.
Now that all the episodes have been recapped and tucked nicely into bed, it's time for you to try your hand at the How Well Do You Know quiz for The Amazing Race Season 15. I already miss the Globetrotters but I will remain optimistic about the next go-round. So, I will see all of you back for number 16 in the New Year as once again, we race around the world.