The Amazing Race 18 cast consists of 11 teams from previous seasons who have unfinished business, whatever that’s supposed to mean. The intent is not so much an all star season as it is to just bring back a random mix of teams who have been on the show over the past three years that may have performed well, dumb lucked their way to the end, or merely went down in flames early on.
For a change, the race is starting on time tonight. We start off from Palm Springs, CA, the second windiest place on Earth (but still one of the hottest).
I see Kent is going by his real name this year, even if Vyxsin is still calling herself something that cannot possibly be a real name. Zev & Justin hope to not lose their passport again. Both Ron & Christina and Margie & Luke tripped up at the final road block. Jaime & Cara were bitches who hated everybody, including each other. They plan to be the ugly Americans again.
The team that places first during this first leg will win the express pass. Apparently, Zev & Justin believe they are part of team Globetrotter during this first leg, or so their T-shirts say. Phil warns the teams they will not just be given their first clue. No, they’ll have to earn it by searching through the desert for a paper airplane from Queensland And Northern Territories Aerial Services, which unbeknownst to most of them is Qantas. At least nobody will be eliminated at the starting line. However, the first 8 teams will make the first flight, while the other teams will be on the second flight, landing 90 minutes later. Ah, but the final team will not only get that 90 minute penalty, but also automatically be U-turned in the next leg.
From here, the teams will head to Sydney, Australia. Kisha & Jen are the first team on the second flight. Amanda & Kris hope the strategy of trying random airlines will work. Mallory, meanwhile, starts praying. Prayer works slightly quicker than randomness, and Amanda & Kris have been U-turned, ironic considering that’s what eliminated them last time.
Bad news for the first flight. A man on their plane had a heart attack. They will be making an unscheduled stop in Honolulu due to the medical emergency, which also means time to refuel.
Flight 2 lands first at 10:20AM. The flight that was originally scheduled to land first actually lands at 10:47AM, nearly half an hour later, which means all those teams that thought they had an unbeatable lead are not scrambling to avoid elimination. Ron & Christina, Mel & Mike, and Jet & Cord miss the first train, placing them at the back of the pack. Missing the second ferry puts Jet & Cord in dead last.
After they land, the teams will take a ferry to Oceanworld in Manly. The road block is to search for a hidden compass while swiming amongst sharks and stingrays, then decipher a sentence written out in nautical flags.
Road block (in order of arrival): Mallory, Kisha, Amanda, Margie, Flight Time, Cara, Justin, Vyxsin, Christina, Mel, Jet
A handful of teams realize that cooperating will give them a leg up, so Kisha & Jen work with Amanda & Kris, while Jaime & Cara work with Margie & Luke. So many teams from season 14 should bode well for them. But there’s a problem. Working together, Margie and Cara still can’t get the puzzle right and are turned away. Also keeping it among seasons, Zev & Justin pass on the answer of their clue to Flight Time & Big Easy, who assumed they could not finish the clue but somehow pick it up along the way. When the option presents itself, Justin refuses to help Jaime & Cara and Margie & Luke, although it wouldn’t hurt to make a couple more allies along the way. Nonetheless, Ron & Christina and Mel & Mike decide to help out Jaime & Cara and Margie & Luke. That will leave just Jet & Cord and Kent & Vyxsin battling for last, with both teams deciding that only half the clue is sufficient. Jet & Cord head back, while Kent & Vyxsin just ask Margie for the answer. This sharing answers nonsense is lame. I don’t assume we will be seeing a similar task to this in the future.
The clue will lead them to join the crew and help sail a 16 foot skiff along a water course, where they will find their next clue.
In what seems like a pretty quick leg, the pit stop for this leg of the race is Shelly Beach.
There’s a reason this seemed quick. Although Gary & Mallory have been granted their express pass for placing first, they are still racing, or at least they will be once Mallory stops yapping. Amanda & Kris are in second, which puts them in a decent position for now, but they still must contend with that U-turn.
First: Gary & Mallory
Second: Amanda & Kris
Third: Kisha & Jen
Fourth: Zev & Justin
Fifth: Flight Time & Big Easy
Sixth: Jaime & Cara
Seventh: Margie & Luke
Eighth: Ron & Christina
Ninth: Mel & Mike
Tenth: Kent & Vyxsin
Eleventh (and way behind): Jet & Cord
Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of The Amazing Race 18 Episode 2, which airs Sunday at 8/7c on CBS.