Okay. I admit it. For a few brief seconds, I felt genuinely sorry for Brent. He literally had to beg to use the bathroom. But, the feeling passed fairly quickly.
I think it's safe to say that Brent and Caite are my second least favorite team on TAR this season. They were edged out — just barely — by dating couple Carol and Brandy, and at times, were neck and neck with them.
Where in the World is Caite?
Brent and Caite simply don't inspire me to support them. Caite finally addressed the youtubes which show how geographically challenged she is or was or whatever the case may be. TAR seems to be her chance to show the world she knows where she is! She's playing her own version of "Where in the World is Caite Upton?"
Even Brent jumped on the "she's smarter than she looks" bandwagon. At least three times, Caite and/or Brent defended her intellect. Unfortunately, in between, we were still ringside for their verbal battles that included a variety of "shut ups" and "you're stupid." Seems like mixed messages to me!
The Cowboy Train Has Left the Station!
Right now, I'm firmly aboard the cowboy train. I like the way their story has unfolded week to week. Most recently, Cord recounted an incident where he caught a hoof in the head and was hospitalized with a crushed skull. Jet sat by his bedside throughout the ordeal.
Each week, Jet and Cord demonstrate phenomenal patience with each other and the obstacles they faced. Despite their second place finish, I look for them to do well next week in the finale.
What's English Got to Do with It?
Producers decided to throw a bit of a curve ball to the teams this week by identifying the first location by it's English name rather than by the common Chinese name that locals would know. As a result, the locals were not of much in help in identifying the "garden bridge."
Brent and Caite found it first and made their way to the temple. Caite again pointed out that she's good at reading maps. Actually, they were better at finding an English speaking local who wrote the Chinese name down and told them to give it to their taxi driver. Can't really fault them for that. Maybe it was pure, dumb luck!
The cowboys, Dan and Jordan, and Louie and Michael, all had a difficult time locating the garden bridge. Michael's answer to the problem was to whip out his binoculars and look around the city for the garden bridge. Not the best solution given the fact that they were facing a time crunch anyway. Finally, they called to find out the directions. Apparently, there's a service that allows those who are not fluent to get destination directions relayed to taxi drivers in Chinese.
'Ugly American' Revisited
Dan and Jordan's plan was to team with the detectives knowing they have a Speed Bump during the leg. There hope was to outrun them at the end. Unfortunately for them, Michael got the directions and gave them to his taxi driver. Dan and Jordan's taxi needed only to follow the detective's cab to the garden bridge.
Periodically, while watching the show, I realize why American tourists are universally disliked. Dan's meltdown was epic after he and Jordan attempted the "talk slower and louder and anyone can understand what you are saying." Dan's tantrum was unexpected and out of line.
1 Idol, 2 Idol, 3 Idol, More!
Counting the golden statues proved to be difficult for Caite. She counted, and recounted, and finally came out with her answer which turned out to be wrong. She described her method of counting up and then across, and even I was a bt confused by the end.
Jet arrived and methodically counted the statues and first time, exited with the right answer, 523. He noticed the two large gold statues which Caite overlooked in her first several attempts.
Dan and Jordan did well with this task too, but Michael and Louie wasted precious time with a wrong answer.
Like Finding a Needle in a Haystack
The Roadblock featured finding tiny stone statues with the names of each teammate carved on the bottom. It was during this phase that Brent's hands began to quiver with the need to go to the bathroom He begged Caite, who was as stony as the statues they were examining. Brent could not focus on the task and Caite was not budging. Finally, she relented and let him go across the hall to a bathroom.
When they returned, Brent was much more focused and quickly found his little statue. Caite found her statue and the two finished the task. Jet had already found his, and Cord was only moments behind Caite. Winning this leg of the race came down to finding a taxi quickly. Brent and Caite found their taxi and arrived on the mat just minutes before Jet and Cord.
Michael and Louie simply could not overcome the Speed Bump and the bungle in counting the statues. They came in last place and were eliminated. Overall, not a bad run for the two older teammates.
The finale is next week. Personally, I don't really see Dan and Jordan as top two contenders. They lucked out by the elimination of stronger teams earlier in the race to get this far. There will undoubtedly be an equalizer at the airport flying back to the United States, so all three teams will head home and start the final leg at the same moment.
Go Team Cowboys!
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