Amber BransonReality Rundown: Week of 11/08
Warning: Reality Rundown discusses the previous week's installments of certain reality television shows. (Currently: The Amazing Race, Top Chef, and Survivor.) These discussions will contain spoilers.
The Amazing Race - Season 15, Episode 7. Airdate - Nov 8, 2009.
Happy Birthday, Flight Time. The teams leave Amsterdam and head to Sweden. Friction between the gay brothers and between the blonde couple provide the drama that reality fans thrive on. The father and son are as heartwarming as always, and the married couple provided us with more than enough drama in the last episode. The Globetrotters are... the Globetrotters. The constant whistling of "Sweet Georgia Brown" in the background keeps their scenes from being too serious. And if you need a giggle, just remember them in their colorful peasant clothing and the way they boogied in the Amsterdam barn dance.
More heights! The Fritt Fall is like Six Flags' Acrophobia and the ride from the end of Zombieland, and not only does a member of each team have to ride it, they have to search the amusement park for an arrow pointing to the next clue while doing so.
And that next clue includes the return of the Travelocity Roaming Gnome, a tag-along from previous seasons. The gnome leads them to.. blow things up. Come on, how fun is that? No one chooses the other detour option, which involves decoding a message written in the Viking alphabet, and why would they?
After everyone blows off some steam and blows up some dirt, they all go on to unroll hay bales in a return of an infamous roadblock from a previous season. (One team searched for almost 10 hours, did not find the striped flag, and were eliminated. For some reason, they were allowed to keep searching for two hours after all the other teams had checked out.)
The brothers reach a breaking point, and Dan breaks down into tears at the pitstop, showing great remorse for the way he yelled at his brother. Cheyne is sooo proud of Megan for how hard she worked unrolling bales and they're very huggy as they check in. Someone else will have to provide next week's drama. Maybe they'll turn of the music and it will be the Globetrotters.
The oldest contestant left in this season takes the physical challenge and unrolls the bales. He works hard and never gives in, and in yet another warm-fuzzy moment, despite their last-place arrival, the father and son team are not eliminated.
Next week? Estonia, Matt doesn't know what a "candelabra" is or how to pronounce the word, and the brothers have a foot-race with the Globetrotters.
Top Chef - Season 6, Episode 12 - Air Date 11/11
After taking a week off for the All Stars Dinner Party, the competition is back. For the human element, Bryan talks about missing his family and his 22-month-old son.
In the Quickfire Challenge, Eli's room service breakfast takes the top prize. Michael and Robin clash as he tries to finish plating his dish and she comes back to the kitchen for her knives and gets in his way.
For the Elimination Challenge, the chefs take inspiration from casinos to prepare a dish and cater for a 175-guest party.
Although the focus on Bryan's personal life is the type of exposition that often sends a contestant home, he is in the top three. His brother walks home with the week's prize, however.
Despite winning the Quickfire, Eli is in the bottom three for Elimination, and watching the episode I am wondering if I am enough of a fan of irony to want to see him go home, both because of what a rapid turnaround it would be and because he spoke in one of his "diary" moments about being ready to see Robin go.
However, for weeks the other contestants have expressed displeasure at Robin's continued presence, and they finally get their wish to see her eliminated. She goes home for her risky, poorly-textured panna cotta.
Next week: No one is confident.
Survivor: Samoa - Episode 9 - Air Date 11/12.
I wasn't a fan of Russell at the beginning of the season. He was too cocky, too good. But he's also good entertainment and a good manipulator. Now that the teams have merged, I find myself rooting for him, especially now that he's working with Shambo and her femullet. So last week, when he played his idol with no real danger, I was distressed and sure he would be going home this week.
But then, after losing the reward challenge, he goes back to the camp and begins searching for another immunity idol. While he searches, the winning half of the team get the first clue to the location of the idol. Russell doesn't need that; he finds the idol for a second time without receiving a single clue.
He and Shambo decide to encourage the former Galus to vote for Russell, while they vote Laura. And of course, when Russ plays the idol, she will go home.
Unfortunately, Laura once again wins the immunity necklace, and the discussion starts to lean toward voting Natalie out instead of Russell, while Russell and Shambo switch their target to Laura's ally Kelly.
Taking the risk, Russell once again plays the idol at tribal council. Laura's expression is one of such anger that I was sure she was about to burst a vessel. On the jury side, Eric seems to be rooting for Russell just as much as I suddenly was, pumping a fist in the air as the first vote shows Russ's name. Most of the votes are for Russell, but it is Kelly who is surprised by a trip to the jury house.
The idol is back in play, and next week sees a frantic search to keep the former Foa Foa members safe from the scheming of the former Galus.
(Don't see your favorite reality indulgence on the Rundown? Leave a comment, and I'll be happy to consider checking it out and giving my opinion next week.)
The Amazing Race - Season 15, Episode 7. Airdate - Nov 8, 2009.
Happy Birthday, Flight Time. The teams leave Amsterdam and head to Sweden. Friction between the gay brothers and between the blonde couple provide the drama that reality fans thrive on. The father and son are as heartwarming as always, and the married couple provided us with more than enough drama in the last episode. The Globetrotters are... the Globetrotters. The constant whistling of "Sweet Georgia Brown" in the background keeps their scenes from being too serious. And if you need a giggle, just remember them in their colorful peasant clothing and the way they boogied in the Amsterdam barn dance.
More heights! The Fritt Fall is like Six Flags' Acrophobia and the ride from the end of Zombieland, and not only does a member of each team have to ride it, they have to search the amusement park for an arrow pointing to the next clue while doing so.
And that next clue includes the return of the Travelocity Roaming Gnome, a tag-along from previous seasons. The gnome leads them to.. blow things up. Come on, how fun is that? No one chooses the other detour option, which involves decoding a message written in the Viking alphabet, and why would they?
After everyone blows off some steam and blows up some dirt, they all go on to unroll hay bales in a return of an infamous roadblock from a previous season. (One team searched for almost 10 hours, did not find the striped flag, and were eliminated. For some reason, they were allowed to keep searching for two hours after all the other teams had checked out.)
The brothers reach a breaking point, and Dan breaks down into tears at the pitstop, showing great remorse for the way he yelled at his brother. Cheyne is sooo proud of Megan for how hard she worked unrolling bales and they're very huggy as they check in. Someone else will have to provide next week's drama. Maybe they'll turn of the music and it will be the Globetrotters.
The oldest contestant left in this season takes the physical challenge and unrolls the bales. He works hard and never gives in, and in yet another warm-fuzzy moment, despite their last-place arrival, the father and son team are not eliminated.
Next week? Estonia, Matt doesn't know what a "candelabra" is or how to pronounce the word, and the brothers have a foot-race with the Globetrotters.
Top Chef - Season 6, Episode 12 - Air Date 11/11
After taking a week off for the All Stars Dinner Party, the competition is back. For the human element, Bryan talks about missing his family and his 22-month-old son.
In the Quickfire Challenge, Eli's room service breakfast takes the top prize. Michael and Robin clash as he tries to finish plating his dish and she comes back to the kitchen for her knives and gets in his way.
For the Elimination Challenge, the chefs take inspiration from casinos to prepare a dish and cater for a 175-guest party.
Although the focus on Bryan's personal life is the type of exposition that often sends a contestant home, he is in the top three. His brother walks home with the week's prize, however.
Despite winning the Quickfire, Eli is in the bottom three for Elimination, and watching the episode I am wondering if I am enough of a fan of irony to want to see him go home, both because of what a rapid turnaround it would be and because he spoke in one of his "diary" moments about being ready to see Robin go.
However, for weeks the other contestants have expressed displeasure at Robin's continued presence, and they finally get their wish to see her eliminated. She goes home for her risky, poorly-textured panna cotta.
Next week: No one is confident.
Survivor: Samoa - Episode 9 - Air Date 11/12.
I wasn't a fan of Russell at the beginning of the season. He was too cocky, too good. But he's also good entertainment and a good manipulator. Now that the teams have merged, I find myself rooting for him, especially now that he's working with Shambo and her femullet. So last week, when he played his idol with no real danger, I was distressed and sure he would be going home this week.
But then, after losing the reward challenge, he goes back to the camp and begins searching for another immunity idol. While he searches, the winning half of the team get the first clue to the location of the idol. Russell doesn't need that; he finds the idol for a second time without receiving a single clue.
He and Shambo decide to encourage the former Galus to vote for Russell, while they vote Laura. And of course, when Russ plays the idol, she will go home.
Unfortunately, Laura once again wins the immunity necklace, and the discussion starts to lean toward voting Natalie out instead of Russell, while Russell and Shambo switch their target to Laura's ally Kelly.
Taking the risk, Russell once again plays the idol at tribal council. Laura's expression is one of such anger that I was sure she was about to burst a vessel. On the jury side, Eric seems to be rooting for Russell just as much as I suddenly was, pumping a fist in the air as the first vote shows Russ's name. Most of the votes are for Russell, but it is Kelly who is surprised by a trip to the jury house.
The idol is back in play, and next week sees a frantic search to keep the former Foa Foa members safe from the scheming of the former Galus.
(Don't see your favorite reality indulgence on the Rundown? Leave a comment, and I'll be happy to consider checking it out and giving my opinion next week.)
