Going into the season I knew almost exactly what to expect as I've watched it twice before but even then the strengths of the season truly shine brighter than the editing.
The obvious weakness of the season is the editing. Tasked with showing 11 teams complete multiple tasks, all progressing at different rates, was clearly a struggle. Certain teams would be completely glossed over and you would have no idea where they were until BAM theyd be shown in the middle of a task. Some teams would be focused on bickering (kevin and drew) yet theyd stay towards the front of the pack while others would fall behind doing the same thing (amie and paul). Sometimes teams would straight up check into the pitstop never being shown driving towards it and you can FORGET the "currently in xxx place" subtitles for the first few legs.
When you look at it through that angle, in terms of the "ratchetness" the season is the "Borneo" of the amazing race. But by that same token when you look at the positives it is also the "Borneo" of the amazing race as well. The cast (bar from the first boot or two) is star-studded and just like the borneo end-game the entire final 5 is LEGENDARY.
Thats where the real strength of the season kicks in: the storytelling. While the editing took a while to really sort itself out, it didnt hinder on the masterful level storytelling in this season. The caliber of inter AND intra team storylines is among the best of the entire series and you really felt like you got to KNOW each and every team (after the first 3 boots). The care put into the stories of non-finalist teams showcases this:
-Paul and Amie: Amie who was very passionate and invested in the race clearly did not know how to deal well with the stresses (mental and physical) of the race. Paul who admitted himself that he only did the race because of amie sees this and, while not much better at the race than amie, is conflicted because he clearly cares a lot about amie. All under the guise of a "bickering" couple i found their dynamic fascinating.
-Lenny and Karyn: Beta male lenny at first tries to constantly impress karyn with varying success, and while constantly beaten down by his partner karyn it slowly turns into him not caring anymore culminating in karyn breaking up with him upon their elimination.
-Nancy and Emily: The protective mother and "adventurous" daughter reconnecting on the race. Yet this is challenged immediately during the episode 2 role reversal when nancy is the one taking pictures of animals as emily yells at her to get inside the car. From then on the race becomes a way for them to slowly get to know each other more and really light the competitive fire under these underdogs that never really existed before in them.
-Kevin and Drew: the "ugly americans" that, while a bit more one note constantly provide the laughs. Every word out of their mouths made me laugh and easily a top 5 m/m team on the amazing race.
The storylines do not end with the final 3 and the way the final moments of frank and margarita sitting in the final train thinking they won when rob and brennan are running to the final matt STILL elicits strong feelings in me on 3rd watch really shows what a great job the editors did. That along with nancy and emily's elimination are some of the best tragic endings on tar to this very day.
Apart from the storytelling (seriously i could continue ranting about it for twice the length of this blog) the legs itself are probably among the weaker points. There isnt a lot of tension in the first two legs as you have no idea whats happening and in a handful of the mid-game legs you pretty much know who is coming in last from the get-go. however when the good legs were quite good, like the 4th place showdown between the guidos and kevin/drew, the 5th place ff showdown between nancy/emily and the guidos and the subsequent dramatic irony as nancy and emily give up on the detour as the guidos decide to wait 8 hours for a bus, the POWERFUL india legs are all standouts.
the final leg is also shit as its essentially decided by a cab ride to a train station as theres a country change after ALL the tasks O_O
Assessment: Great [above TARASIA 1] as much as i love the teams a lot of the legs dont hold up on rewatch and even when you hold it to the standard of the first season ever some of the legs drag. The finale setup is also unforgiveable like in what universe was that leg planning a non-horrible idea. Rob and Brennan, essentially the 2nd most boring team of the cast, ended up winning ushering in the standard for mediocre/bad TAR winners (even though i liked them more on rewatch)
