If Only We Had Chicken Suits...

Chicken suits. Did Trump just fire someone over chicken suits?

After the requisite movement of a team member to Arrow, the teams started on a marketing task. As soon as I heard the two different bowls, I knew Arrow would win. Why? Because I would never eat Kinetic's creation...I'm like Trump - I don't like fruit with my food. (I was the only one at my own wedding who didn't eat the chicken with fruit salsa) It was even clearer when they showed the two restaurants. Arrow's restaurant had balloons, signs, and a general air of excitement. Over at Kinetic's restaurant I wasn't even sure they were having a promotion. Did they do any marketing at all?

In the end, Arrow did finally win one, and got an amazing reward. They're in the house now, and got a private concert from Andrea Bocelli. Amazing. I liked seeing a softer side of Frank at the reward too - he really got choked up at the concert. My friend Stephen thinks that Frank is a "typical obnoxious Yankees fan"; he is, but he's also starting to grow on me. I also really like Aaron. He's a local kid - he actually went to the same college as my sister - and he seems to have really good business sense.

Over on Kinetic, it was great to see them in the boardroom. I was also happy to see the return of pretty-boy-Sean from last season. What bothered me was what ended up happening. It shouldn't have been Marissa fired. It wasn't her fault that they lost. Heidi was in control, and decided that she wasn't going to take any of Marissa's suggestions. I totally see where Marissa just gave up - none of her ideas were being considered. (I also don't understand what the rest of the team was doing while Marissa & Derek were working on marketing) Marissa was also right when she pointed out that the rest of the team had ganged up on her - they HAD decided ahead of time to take out Marissa - when Trump asked them all who they would fire, they already knew who they would say. I think that if Marissa had managed to keep her mouth shut, maybe Heidi would have been fired. I know that there is a lot of board room that we don't see (come on NBC, post the entire board room on the web!), but it didn't seem like Heidi had to do much explaining about the task. But Marissa kept saying "chicken suits" over and over and over. Of course, she was the one Trump fired.

Not Really Sure That Grease is What I Want

Yes, I watched Grease: You’re The One That I Want again tonight. Actually, I watched last week’s episode this afternoon, then the new episode tonight. My husband thinks I’m crazy, but I keep watching. Of course, by me watching, my reality-tv hating hubby actually uttered the phrase “this actually makes me miss American Idol.” Totally worth the three hours.

I hated the format of the show - introducing two performers, then having them both perform and be judged together. I’m not really sure of the point. I also didn’t understand Billy Bush feeling the need to give each contestant a nickname (“It’s sweet Sandy! And emotional Sandy!).

I’m also really unclear on the show itself. Will it be singing every week? And wouldn’t that just make this a really cheap rip-off of American Idol? I’m hoping that we’ll have weeks where the competition will be dancing or acting. And why did they bring back two contestants? Matt was good, but Ashley A. was horrible. If you’re going to bring two back, why Ashley A? Very strange. They also never explained if the contestants choose their songs and outfits, or if they are selected for them to set the mood (like they were in the final round at “Grease Academy”). And if someone selects the outfits for them, whoever selected Laura’s outfit (the short yellow shirts and white high heel ankle boots) needs to be fired. Now.

I’m also a little shaky on the voting thing. First, there doesn’t seem to be a results show planned. When do the people get voted off? The results show is the one thing that all of these Idol knock-offs have in common.

Sigh…I can’t believe I care this much.

Anyways, some of the contestants were pretty good. I liked Derek and Chad for the guys, as well as Austin, though I think his “I’m good and I know it” attitude is going to get him kicked off earlier than expected. For the girls, I liked Kate and Ashley S. I’m not sure who will be eliminated, mostly because I’m not sure how it will work…is it voting that eliminates someone, or is there another round before someone goes home? And did anyone else notice how nice the judges were being to some of them who really didn’t deserve it? I have a theory. There are always those “vote for the worst” websites…could the judges actually be aware of them? There’s a lot more at stake for the judges to have a strong winner at the end of this show than at the end of all the others. I really think that they may be nervous to really slam a bad performance for fear that voters may rally behind them. Just a theory. I guess we’ll find out in two weeks (because NBC is smart enough to not put this stuff up against the Super Bowl…).

Idol in NYC

Thank goodness - two full hours of Idol tonight. And once again, the producers rewarded us with some of the best and worst singers ever. No one really in between - just really good or really bad. (which brings up a great game - can you guess whether they'll be good or bad before they open their mouths? It's harder than you think...)

I was right about the first contestant of the night - Ian was, in fact, the same guy who auditioned over the summer for So You Think You Can Dance?. And, sadly, he is a worse singer than he is a dancer. But good for us, it was such a "great" audition that he needed to be escorted out of the room. Fantastic start to the night.

There were lots of really horrible auditions tonight. And the producers did a great job editing them. Not only did they show Ian walking around introducing himself as the next American Idol, they played the soap opera music over Ashanti's pleas to go to Hollywood. They also gave Sarah, who knows she can't sing, way more airtime then you would guess (and trust me, I'm thankful for it). Seacrest was also in rare form tonight - he's really perfected the art of saying nothing. The best was Isadora...after she read his palm (and did you see the look on his face?) and really ruined a perfectly good song, he asked her how she thought day 2 went. When she tried to explain that it was day 3, he just looked at the cameras and commented on how that summed it all up. Great job Ryan.

There were also a lot of really good singers tonight. I really liked Jenry (the hunky guy in the polo shirt), Chris (the green shirt guy who looks like Justin Timberlake), Jory (the world traveler), and Antonella (who auditioned with her best friend...sure to be good for some drama later in the show). I was also really glad to see Nicholas (who made it to the Hollywood round last year, but bowed out) back this season - I loved him last year, so I hope he can get it together in Hollywood this year.

Another Great Night on Idol

It was another fantastic night on American Idol. The only problem? It was only an hour long.

First, though, a follow-up from last week's show. You may remember Jonathan, the large boy from Seattle who was friends with the strange-looking kid that Simon called a bush baby. Turns out that Jonathan is actually a Special Olympian, which started a string of hatred toward the show, most notably from Rosie O'Donnell, who couldn't believe that Simon would treat a Special Olympics kid that way. Well, you know what? Jonathan didn't mind. He thought it was funny. And Special Olympics released a statement supporting the Idol judges as well. They were pleased that Jonathan was treated like any other kid, and given the same chance that everyone else got. I couldn't agree more.

So on to tonight's show, which made me and my husband laugh so hard it actually hurt. It started out strong, with Frank the cheerleader who brought a band and cheer squad with him. And when he didn't make it through to Hollywood, the band played that "so sad too bad" noise (I won't even begin to try to spell out that noise...you know what I mean). And then when Simon asked them to shut up, Seacrest fought back...we had to watch it a couple of times we were laughing so hard. Then there was the dullest contestant ever, Tameka, who I don't even think realized what she was doing. What about Travis, who wanted to bring emotion to the show? The only emotion I got was more laughter. Or Topher, whose wife left him, but he got to call her a b---h on national tv. What about Robert, whose Elvis song makes me think that he may also be a Special Olympian. And my absolute favorite, Janita, who told cameras that she wears sunglasses because they "boost my confidentiality." They do wonders for your confidence as well.

There were a few good singers. The ones that I think will do well were Sundance (I mean, come on - his name is Sundance), Danielle (who sang the Aretha song), Sean (the Castro lookalike), and Melinda (the girl with a great voice but no self-confidence). Can't wait for tomorrow's show.

Oh - one last note. Did anyone else recognize the guy in the preview for Wednesday night's show? I think he auditioned last summer for So You Think You Can Dance?...he was the one who came in and asked where he should put his mink. I could be wrong, but I'm fairly certain it's the same guy. Hopefully I'm not the only one who noticed...

Would you Rather Quit or be Fired?

That's really the question, isn't it. Ok, maybe the bigger question from Sunday night is how Tom Brady and my beloved Patriots could blow a 21-3 halftime lead to the Colts. Seriously. I don't care that it was one of the best games ever, that Peyton Manning may just be a better QB than Brady, and that he might also be one of the nicest and most decent guys in the game. At least now we can get back to focusing on the fact that pitchers and catchers report to spring training in less than a month. Sigh...

So after I got over the Pats loss (ok, sort of), I watched Sunday night's episode of The Apprentice. I'm just not sure about this season. It sure does seem like it's jumped the shark. But I can't figure out why. The contestants are nice enough. The twists this season are actually interesting. And all of the tasks have been fantastic (best tasks in several years...thank you Mark Burnett...). But something seems to be lacking, and I don't know what.

The task this week was fantastic. And you could tell from about two seconds in that Michelle was going to lose. She didn't want to be project manager, and she clearly had no leadership skills. Meanwhile, Aaron was leading his team to a clear victory. I kind of felt bad for Michelle's team. It was pitiful. But what was even more pitiful than the crushing defeat was Michelle quitting. She had to know she was going to be fired. She could have even gone into the board room, said that she was responsible for the loss and that she should be fired instead of the others. It would have been the same result, and she would have looked a million times better. Instead, she made a decision that is going to make it hard for her to get a job outside of the show. Yes, the show is hard. But you had to know that going in - to look at Donald Trump and tell him that this wasn't what you signed up for is not only dumb; it's insulting, both to Trump and to the thousands of people who were turned down so you could have a chance on the show. I hope that she can live with that choice.

More Losers on American Idol

Rumor had it that this season's auditions in Seattle were the worst in Idol history. And while it's hard to trust anything that Paula Abdul says, I think she's right on this one. They could really just package tonight's episode as "The Best of the Worst" and be done with it.

You knew it was going to be bad when last season's "I Shot the Sheriff" guy started the show off dressed as Uncle Sam. And then it's followed up by a not-so-attractive girl calling herself "the hotness." No, this just can't be good. Actually, not good would have been fine. Instead, we got Darwin and her mother, who seemed to step right out of the twilight zone. Or new-found friends Kenneth (who looks like a monkey) and Jonathan (who would be much better suited for The Biggest Loser). Or Nicholas, the software engineer who just murdered "Unchained Melody." (and since he said that his co-workers encouraged him to try out, you just have to think that he's the butt of one of the greatest practical jokes ever) What about Amy, whose sob story was that her husband told her not to audition, even though he was clearly trying to protect her. Or Big Red, who apparently isn't a fan of American Idol, or even of music itself. Do these people not have friends? Why don't they tell them how bad they sound?

There were a few good singers tonight (but really, just a few). I liked Thomas with the afro, who sang "Arms of a Woman" towards the beginning of the show. I also liked brother & sister duo of Shyamali and Sanjaya. They both had great voices, and I think that the show could use some more diversity.

Yay for the audition round & for people who have no clue. Can't wait for next week.

Idol is Back!

Hooray! After what seems like forever, American Idol is finally back. And even though I love the singing rounds (you know, when we actually get to vote), there is nothing like the audition rounds. Even my cranky husband likes it.

Some thoughts from last night's premiere...Ryan Seacrest seems a bit snarky this season, and I LOVE it. His comments to some of the crazier contestants were so funny that we had to pause and rewind the tivo. Also hilarious? The fact that they had one of the two doors locked. It was like a running joke on The Muppet Show as nearly every reject also had to hear Simon say "other door." (and you just knew that after awhile Simon was adding an expletive after that) I also liked the return of the guest judge. I'm not a fan of the guest judge later on in the show (since it always seems that they are there to sell something), but I liked it last night. Maybe it was just because it was Jewel, but I hope they do it in more cities.

Now for the contestants. Oh dear. There were so many bad contestants last night, I can't possibly name them all. Some standouts? Troy, the "urban Amish" guy who admitted that he's not the next American Idol, and I think who made up the song as he went along. And there were the string of mediocre singers who made it on tv because they had a serious meltdown after being rejected. The best was Jason (the juggler) who seemed pretty calm as he left, then launched into a string of expletives and tears when he was back with Seacrest. Oh my. And he was also the beneficiary of the best edit of the night - as he's swearing and sobbing, they cut to Simon commenting that he took it well.

Speaking of editing, they continued the practice of highlighting people who were either tremendously good or tremendously bad. They spent a lot of time with Idol super-fan Brenna...super bad. And they spent a lot of time with Denise (the "crack baby")...really good. My husband also noticed that they only showed the good singers who had an interesting back story. The "normal" singers who made it through to Hollywood got no airtime.

There were a couple of singers who stood out in a good way last night. I'm scared to make predictions this early, but I liked Jarrod the Navy guy, Denise the "crack baby", and Sarah who sang "Somewhere Over the Rainbow." Now watch - they'll all be cut in the first round in Hollywood. So sorry to jinx you all.

Nice Shorts...

There’s a lot of talk about this season of The Apprentice. Some say "best ever"; some say the show has jumped the shark. All I can think about is how white Donald Trump's ankles are. Seriously, did you see them? They were about a million shades lighter than his face. It's all I can think about. Well, that and Carey in his pink bathing suit. Oh my.

Even though I don't see how designing a bathing suit prepares you for a career in the Trump organization, I really liked the task. I liked it because it wasn't all about selling a sponsor's product (which was nearly every task last season). Yes, there was a sponsor, but it was much better integrated into the show.

So, I liked the task (and I liked the reward - how fun would it be to hang out at the Playboy Mansion? And yes, my husband thinks it's really cool that I think that...). But I hated the editing. Did anyone else notice that in Carey's interview at the beginning of the show he said that living in the tents for two weeks was miserable? Did anyone else realize that that means that they lost, since they had only been in the tents for about a week at the start of the task? Even if they had actually been living in the tents already for two weeks, the story of the show has them having been there a week, which would break up the story they are trying to build.

I also hated that Carey got fired. There was no question that it was his fault that they lost. (I mean, come on...who would wear that?) But he took a risk, while the other team played it very safe. And I really hated that Michelle refused to make a decision or take a stand on anything, so nothing could be pinned on her if they lost. I hate that kind of game play, especially in a show like this, which is all about taking a risk and shining.

Grease: You're the One That I Want

Yes, I watched again. No, I don't know why.

Armed and Famous

Have I watched the show? NO. I hadn't even planned on it - you know the premise of a show is bad when I don't tivo it. I didn't even feel bad about it. That is, until today. I love love love the Don and Mike show. It's a syndicated radio show that I've listened to since middle school. Seriously. They rock. So on today's show, Mike was talking about how great Armed and Famous was. To the point that I'm thinking about giving it a try. The episodes are online...I'll let you know...

Grease...I'm Just not Sure You're the One That I Want...

I finally just got around to watching the first episode of Grease: You're the One That I Want. I don't think it speaks too well for the show that it took me nearly a week to watch it (especially when you consider how many re-runs of Scrubs I've watched this week on Comedy Central...wait, isn't it time for another episode right now?...). I will say, it's not as bad as I thought it would be. That being said, it's not that good either.

I love the set-up itself. I'm one of those people who loves the movie version of Grease; one of those people who always stops on it when it's on tv. Hypothetically, it's a combination of two of my favorite reality shows - American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance. But it falls so short. The format is such a copy of American Idol that their producers should prepare for the law suits. But in all the areas that they try to be Idol they fall hopelessly short. The judges aren't nearly as good, and (I can't believe I'm about to say this) Billy Bush is certainly no Ryan Seacrest (yikes, I did just type that). They also have the most ridiculous catch phrase...apparently every time someone is chosen, the judges have to use the phrase "you're the one that we want...". Do you think that the producers look at interns and say "you're the one that I want to get me a double espresso"? One can only hope.

The other ridiculousness is that the next round of competition has them going to "Grease Academy." Wow. Let me just tell you where I do NOT want to go.

So, will I watch the show again? Probably, especially since I can tivo it and watch it some other time when there's nothing else on. I'm hoping that once we get through auditions and there are actual good contestants I'll get more into it. Hopefully...

The Donald is Back

It's been a long few weeks without any new reality tv. I really don't know how I survived.

Last night's premiere of The Apprentice: LA was surprisingly good. I knew that there would be some twists, but not how many twists there would be. And for the most part, they're good.

To recap, they're in LA this season. Trump is in one mansion, the candidates are in the mansion next door. Well, sort of...the winning team is in the mansion; the losing team is in tent-city in the sprawling backyard (and since it's a mansion's backyard, there are sprinklers. Brilliant.). It's a huge twist not just because of the rift it creates between the teams, and the reward of living in the house, but game-wise, it means the teams don't really interact with each other. At first I didn't like it, but it's more Survivor-ish, and we all know how I feel about Survivor. George and Carolyn are gone...I know that Carolyn is no longer with the Trump organization, but who knows what happened to George. Ivanka is the one "eyes & ears" this season, and she's actually pretty good. The other seat? The winning PM. Wow. That's a HUGE twist...not sure if I like it or not yet. It will be interesting to see how it plays out over the season, especially when a PM who has sat in the board room actually loses. The final twist I know how I feel about - the winning PM stays PM until they lose. This I hate. So many reasons why - for now, just know that I hate it.

Now for the candidates. It's hard to have feelings about most of them yet, but I definitely have my favorites (and my not-so-favorites). I really like Heidi & James. I also like Angela. One of them will be in the finals for sure (see, I'm not so much for predicting the entire final three anymore!). At the other end? Well, let's just say I wasn't sad to see Martin go. If he pulled out one more African proverb, I would have lost it. So worthless; so his time to go. Frank didn't do a great job, but I think he'll be fine - being the first PM when you don't know your team yet...it's hard, and he didn't lose by a huge margin.

The other thing I really like this season is that Trump seems to have a lot more attitude. Even from the first few minutes when he said to his son "take care of yourself." :) He was funny on the reward, and snarky in the boardroom. I love it.

Can't wait for next week...

The Puppet Master Wins it All

So another season of Survivor comes to an end, and even with a lackluster final tribal council, this was one of the best seasons in awhile.

The second to last immunity challenge is always a tough one, and the ropes course puzzle challenge was no different. It was TOUGH, and it was a close finish at the end. I do wonder, though, if there was a challenge or two that was cut out by the producers (before the survivors actually competed in it). There has always been a "second chance" obstacle course...elements from lots of previous challenges. There also wasn't a final reward challenge - no car reward. I do know that Chevy pulled out of their sponsorship of Survivor this season (though the way it was announced it seemed like it was in response to the racial divisions of tribes, which was after the season was filmed). I also wonder when the decision was made to have a final three - if it was mid-season, or a decision made before filming started. No surprise that Adam was the next voted off, though I loved his game play in the end to try to force Yul to use the immunity idol. Very very smart - probably his best strategy move in the game...too bad he didn't start really playing the game earlier.

So after the final rite of passage (which was nice that they got to all do together...and also why part of me thinks that the final three twist was added later in the game) we had one of the best final immunity challenges in awhile. I still can't believe how long Sundra lasted. I also think that by having a final three, they eliminated one of the greatest powers in the game - deciding who sits next to you in the final tribal council. It may have well been by design...so much of the game play in the past has been choosing someone for the final tribal that you know you can beat (and therefore the most deserving players often go out third). I don't think the game would have played out any differently, but still an interesting twist. I also loved that Ozzy & Yul decided that it was most fair to have the vote end in a tie. Kudos to Becky for realizing that if she wanted any hope at all of winning, she couldn't accept the immunity idol from Yul. In the end, it was the lamest tie breaker ever. How can you be out there for 38 days and not be able to make fire? And not being able to make fire with matches? Oh my goodness. Did you see the looks on the faces of the jury (nice yawns by the way) and on the face of Jeff Probst? It's going to be a tough call for best Probst look of the season...the look of disgust as they can't make fire, or the look of shock when Billy professed his love for Candice. In the end, Becky managed to actually get a flame (after over 90 minutes), and Sundra was the only member of the Aitu Four to not face the final jury.

Which brings us to the final tribal council. I do feel bad for Becky. She had to know going in that the chances of her even getting one vote were slim to none. So why she didn't just lay it all out there is beyond me. She had NOTHING to lose. Instead, she said very little, which was how she played the game. I don't think she could have won, but she could at least have gotten a few votes. With the exception of Jonathan & Adam, this final tribal council was one of the most boring ever. It seemed like everyone had just accepted the fact that Yul or Ozzy would win, and that most (if not all) had made up their minds before tribal ever started. Part of the problem, too, was that Brad, Rebecca, & Jenny had never been on a tribe with all three of them. And while CBS hasn't posted the final votes on their website (which, by the way, is strange, since they usually show us in the end who everyone voted for, yet they still haven't...hmmmm...), I would bet that Jenny & Brad voted for Yul, since they actually knew him from their original tribe at the beginning of the game. Regardless of final two or final three in the future, the members of the jury need to be voted on post-merge, simply so they will have had actual interaction with the final survivors.

In the end, Adam's decision to honor his promise to Yul (to vote for him if Yul voted out Jonathan before Adam & Parvati) was the deciding vote. And with the car being rewarded during the finale, Ozzy manages to keep the Survivor car curse alive. It was a tough call...it's the one of the only seasons where the final two (yes, I know that Becky was there too, but no one really thought she could win, did they?) really both deserved to win. Yul was one of the best strategic players ever, and Ozzy was certainly the best physical players ever. I only wish we could have found out what would have happened if there had been a tie. Maybe a million for both?

Speaking of unanswered questions, what happened to Nate? Did you see him hobbling in with a hurt ankle for two of the last tribal councils? And seriously, why didn't they explain what would have happened in the case of a tie?

With four nice people in the end, and lots of love all around, it was a really boring reunion show. Cao Boi continued to be weird (and I loved that when he tried to add something Probst looked at him and shook his head no), and no one mentioned that Sekou's music wasn't very good. And why didn't Probst ask if something happened between Adam & Candice while they were on the jury?

So a great season of Survivor comes to an end. And the previews of Survivor: Fiji look AMAZING. I just wish I didn't have to wait till the spring for it. I hope you all have a wonderful Chanukah/Christmas/New Years/Winter Holiday...see you in 2007.

The Great Cook Islands humpback whale...

That's right, I'm still laughing about it. Oh Ozzy. Who knew you had it in you? :)

With the finale tonight (can I just say again how much I hate that there will be a final 3?), I'm going to keep it brief, but a few thoughts on Thursday's episode...

Why did Ozzy win the reward challenge? It was a reward challenge...he would have been much better off losing (or pacing himself so he would come in 2nd or 3rd, and still gone on the reward) and getting the target off his back a little. If he loses an immunity, we may just see Adam in the final three tonight.

Two great challenges. I liked the variation on the mud volcano challenge from Borneo, and a tough tough immunity challenge (as it should be at this stage of the game).

We still haven't had the car reward challenge...Ozzy might be the person to break the Survivor "car curse." Of course, if I was that close to the million, and I might not try as hard on the car challenge knowing that no one who's won the car has ever won the game.

Finally, what was up with the hat at tribal council? I'm not sure why Probst pointed it out in the first place, since it easily could impact the game. But worse than that was Yul's reaction. Why wouldn't you just say that Jonathan asked for the hat back, and it just happened that Yul carried it in - tell the jury that the hat was from EVERYONE. Yul's honesty could very well be his downfall in the game.

So, finale tonight, and I think it will be Ozzy or Yul to win it. All I know is that my tivo is ready to capture the first moment between Candice & Billy. :)

The Biggest Loser Finale

Holy Cow. That's all I have to say. Holy Cow.

Ok, maybe I do have FEW more things to say about the season finale of The Biggest Loser. First, I may be wrong on this point, but I think that the contestants this season lost considerably more weight than in either of the previous two seasons. (Matt, who won last season, lost 157 lbs - about 46% of his weight) That being said, I also believe that this season had more time at home before the finale. I thought that they had 3-4 months at home before; this season they had at least 5 months (since Heather was 5 months pregnant!). And while the weight loss is unbelievably impressive, I worry about the message it's sending as well. There's no doubt that Americans are overweight, and most of us need to lose a few pounds. But losing 50% of your body weight is an unrealistic goal for most (even for those who really do need to lose that much weight), and certainly unhealthy to lose it in that amount of time. I would like to see a special a year from now to see how much weight they have actually kept off. I'm also sure that I'm not the only person who looked into their "Biggest Loser Club" since it clearly works...seems like the show may just be a giant advertisement for their website (you do have to pay to be a club member).

Anyways, I was impressed with their weight loss, especially Poppi, who lost all that weight by herself. I was also wholly unimpressed with the attitudes of several of the contestants. Yes, you lost a lot of weight. And yes, you look great. But you're still the same person - you're NOT better than us. And Marty - is that really the attitude you want to teach your students? As a teacher, I was embarrassed for you.

Side note: if you were surprised that Heather was pregnant, please raise your hand. Oh, I hope your hand isn't up right now. As soon as they showed her being tired and gaining weight, it was pretty clear (that, and they stopped showing her progress at home!). She did look really good though, even though I wasn't a fan throughout the show.

So a blue team member finally won (actually, both big prizes were won by blue teamers...Bob must be elated), with Erik losing a ridiculous 214 pounds - that's 52.08% of his body weight. Holy Cow. He looks like a completely different person. I hope he can keep the weight off...he does seem like he's a nice guy.

And with that, we're done for another season. It doesn't look like they'll be doing a "special edition" season this spring (remember how they did those 2-episode things last spring? They weren't that bad, really). So no more fat people on scales until the fall. Sigh...how will we ever last that long? :)

Season Finale of The Amazing Race

Even though I'm sad that we won't have The Amazing Race for a few months, I loved last night's season finale.

The last leg is always very quick - usually at least two flights, and lots of places to go to very quickly. This season's last leg was no different. Three countries, two flights, and two long train rides. Lots and lots of room for error.

The best face of the whole season was during last night's roadblock. No, it had nothing to do with Rob complaining that he didn't get to skydive (they explained today that the reason she did it was that they weren't sure if there would be one more roadblock on the race...she had 2 left, he had 1, and they wanted to have the option for either of them to do the final roadblock...really good strategy, actually). It was Lyn's face as the plane did a nosedive. Ha! I'm sure her kids will replay that for her over and over and over and...

I also LOVED that the final leg was in Paris. I've never been anywhere, but we were in Paris in October - my first trip out of the U.S.! So it was SO exciting to see the places where we were a few months ago! My husband wasn't as excited at first, but then we started recognizing things...the boys were in the metro stop by our hotel, we saw a restaurant where we ate at, and the detour was right by where we stayed (and we walked by there almost every day!). It rocked.

I also LOVED the drama at the airport. While there is part of me that wonders what would have happened if the boys didn't get on the flight, I was so glad they did (and that 'Bama didn't). My guess is that they would have changed a task to make it so it was an actual race at the end (it wouldn't have been too hard to add a task where they had to wait until something opened to allow a team or two to catch up). It was great tv at the end though, and who would have guessed that it would have all come down to a cabbie with EZPass? :)

So in the end, Tyler & James won, and I'm glad they did. They ran a great race throughout, and didn't rely on anyone else to get to the end. I'm also glad that Rob & Kimberly are much much nicer in real life than they were on the race! Kimberly said today that at some point she realized they were going to argue, and finally just embraced it. They also presented Tyler & James with neat collage frames during an interview today with pictures of the 4 of them and an EZPass!

Next up is The Amazing Race: All Stars...the previews say that it's coming in February, and the teams are still a secret. The real bummer is that there are teams featured in the preview that are definitely NOT a part. Strange. Regardless, though, I can't wait!

I LOVE This Season!

Ok, I admit it - this season of Survivor started slow. Too many people, too many tribes, gimmicks galore. But now? Well...I think this may be one of the best seasons ever.

In the previews for this week's episode, it sure did look like Parvati had to leave the game (thus explaining how we still have so many survivors). But in the first few minutes she sliced her thumb open, had it stitched up, and won the reward challenge. (and didn't you just love the juxtaposition of Parvati being the toughest player ever with Adam's wincing at the sight of blood?) She hasn't been my favorite player, but man is she tough.

I always love the family member reward challenge. And this one was great - a nice combination of a few previous challenges, and a nice balance between the survivors and their loved ones playing (I hate when the loved ones do the entire challenge). I don't understand, though, why it took so long for them to realize to squeeze their hair and clothes into the bucket (did they not watch previous seasons?). I also LOVED that Parvati's dad got to choose the other two to go on the reward. Side note - did anyone else notice the number of parents that were there vs. spouses/kids? This group of survivors may be the youngest yet. (but very smart - bringing back corn and chicken and meatloaf bought Adam & Parvati another few days, and may put them into the finals)

Oh Ozzy. First, you encourage your alliance to stop sharing food with the Raro folks. Then you engineer a plan to hide food from Adam & Parvati. And then you lap everybody at the challenge. Does anyone else remember how before the mutiny, Aitu discussed voting out Ozzy, since he would be such a threat at the challenges? Hmmm...

So one of the best players ever, Jonathan, was the next survivor voted off, and we're down to six. Of course, we're down to six, with only two episodes left. Word is that the final will be different this season - not a final two. Not sure what that means (rumor is final three), especially because there is the possibility for a tie in the final vote. And since Mark Burnett has publicly said that he will never do a final vote reveal on the island again, that adds a whole extra layer of intrigue (in season 1, where the votes were read at final tribal council...since then, the final votes are revealed during the live finale). I don't even know where to start predicting a winner, since an expanded final changes everything. But if Yul is up for votes from the jury, I don't know how he can lose.

Biggest Loser Final Four

I know, I said last week that I was done with The Biggest Loser. But I've logged so many hours with this ridiculous season, I just have to see it to the end. Even if it meant sitting through last night's "supersized" episode (seriously, someone at NBC is having a good laugh about calling an episode of a weight loss show "supersized"...hee hee!).

The first hour of the show featured the trainers going to two high schools to mentor kids for a whopping three weeks. Ooooh. I know it made a difference in the kids' lives to train with Bob for a few hours, then have him come in and look at what they eat for lunch. But seriously, how little effort did he put into this? At least Kim came back for the follow-up visit; Matt from last season did the follow-up with Bob's kids. And the indignation about the cafeteria food? Seriously Bob, it's like that at every cafeteria in America. And while it is nice to pack your lunch, a huge percentage of kids can't afford to do that. At some schools, more than 50% of the students are on free or reduced lunch programs. Which means that school lunch is the only option. It would have been even better if Bob & Kim had given the kids some strategies to eat what the cafeteria was serving.

The actual episode wasn't much better. The final challenge wasn't actually a challenge - somehow running a triathlon was a "reward." And yes, I did think it was touching that they all waited for Wylie to swim together. But don't you think they would have left him in the dust if there was a prize at the finish line? Seriously.

And then there was the triumphant return of Matt & Suzy to the ranch to give the contestants a pep talk. Suzy looks great - she's put back on a few pounds, but still is super skinny (I also hear that she's pregnant, so any extra weight may just be from that!). But no shocker, Matt's put back a LOT of the weight. Then he tells the contestants that he put a lot of the weight back on, but it's coming back off now that he's realized he needs to keep this up for the rest of his life. Let me get this straight - you're working out twice a day and eating a low-cal diet for the rest of your life? Seriously, I'd rather be a few pounds overweight than live like that for the rest of my life.

It also was no surprise that when Jaron fell below the yellow line, he was sent home. The other contestants were trying to get him off since he set foot on the ranch. I did like how he left though - he's a classy guy. And while I hated that he was voted out, I think it probably was the right choice - Jaron would have won the whole thing in the end.

So next week is the live finale. It's really anyone's game - did you notice how close the final four are in total percentages lost? Of course, they're previewing that a finalist has something shocking happen, so maybe one of them goes home and stops losing (my money's on Heather). There's no one left really to root for...I guess I'm hoping for Wylie, since we can't have them all lose.

Final 3 Set on TAR

The good news? There's finally an all girl team in the final three of The Amazing Race. The bad news? It's not Dustin & Kandice.

This was another great leg of the race. This was the second "gross food" roadblock this season (3rd challenge overall when you figure in the cow lips fast forward). Eating the camel meat, though, was really more a mental task then physical. It seemed like if they didn't know it was camel, it wouldn't have been bad at all...James & Kandice both did it quickly, commenting that it tasted like hamburger. It's just the whole idea of eating camel that slowed the other two teams up.

Speaking of the other teams...what is up with Rob & Kimberly? Every week they melt down, and every week they are all teary-eyed and in love at the pit-stop. Of course, this week's finish was even more of the tears & love. Did Rob actually start to cry and talk about how he wants to marry Kimberly? I guess that's touching...they certainly do deserve each other. They don't bother me nearly as much as Lyn & Karlyn. I do have to hand it to Lyn - she did a good job of keeping reasonably calm in the face of Karlyn's nastiness. I think that she set a good example for her kids, which is far more than I can say about Karlyn. She is acting far more like one of Lyn's kids than Lyn's friend. I would put her on the list of most obnoxious racers ever. I will say, though, that we were so excited when they chose the tomatoes detour...my husband got so excited as they were driving there, thinking of what Karlyn's reaction would be to being pelted by the locals.

I'm bummed that the beauty queens were eliminated. They were a far better team to be the first all-female winners than the 'Bama girls. That, and they could have actually won. Tyler & James were right - having 'Bama in the final three gives them a much better chance to win (it's like having a one in two shot, instead of one in three). I also liked how they broke more than a few stereotypes about beauty queens. I know, it's strange to even type that, but I have a few friends that did the Miss Virginia pageant (one who actually was Miss Virginia), and they are bright, wonderful people - nothing like you would expect.

So next week is the final...I'm pretty sure that Rob & Kimberly win. Or Tyler & James. In the preview at the end of this week's episode, it shows all three teams running for the finish line...two of them look happy.

Oh Snap!

Holy cow, last night's episode of Survivor: Cook Islands was one of the best ever. Let me just say that again...one of the best episodes ever. Even with the slow start, this season is shaping up to be one of the ages. Thank you Jonathan.

Why Jonathan? He's one of the best characters Survivor has ever had. And he was in rare form last night. First, he cleaned up on the Survivor auction. And he wasn't shy about it. Pepperoni burps when no one has eaten are classic. He played that auction exactly how you should - spend every last cent because you never know. They've already had the reward challenge with letters from home, so you know that you're probably only looking at food & comfort items being up for grabs - spend away! I don't feel at all bad for the knuckleheads who came away with nothing. What were you waiting for? And why Adam & Candice didn't pool ALL their money to get the chance to send someone to exile was ridiculous. You don't know what the note is, only that it is a power? You're at a 3-5 minority - take any chance you can to change the game.

There is a tradition of Survivor meltdowns, but nothing like the "fish incident" last night. Five eat while three make-out in the shelter (which, by the way, was so gross...don't be kissing Candice while you've got Parvati snuggled in on your other arm! Ewwww!). Every season there is someone who realizes that they are about to go home, and they stop putting in all the work at camp. But never has the rest of the tribe decided to just stop feeding them. And Jonathan & Candice's fight was classic.

Speaking of classic, Candice's exit certainly falls in that category. No rant, no gesture, just a long sloppy kiss with Adam. Once again, ewwww! I think that Nate's jury reactions would also go in the "classics" category. I think he may have gotten more screen time on the jury then Sundra did this episode. And Jeff Probst's parting line was also fantastic - "A kiss is nice… Maybe if it were love he would have given you the Immunity necklace."

A few other notes. Yul is maybe the smartest person to ever play the game. Showing everyone the immunity idol was brilliant. They all knew he had it; by showing it he pretty much bailed out Jonathan. He is clearly running every possible scenario in his head, and is smart enough to make moves to keep his alliance going. If he's in the final two, I don't think he can lose, even if the Raro folks hold to their promise to not vote for him as retaliation for keeping Jonathan in the game. We also have a LOT of people left for day 31...something has got to happen, especially with the jury. Rumor is that the finale will start with 5...there are three episodes left (including the finale on 12/17, so I guess that makes sense...sort of). I'm still convinced there will be at least one more big twist to come. Hmmm...