Poland/India, Season
27, Episode 10 preview
All you need to know:
THE TIES THAT UNBIND:
As always, alliances are hard to follow and easy to undo on
the Race, and by this point they seem
to be all undone. I’m looking for some serious back-biting and betrayal in Episode
10 as it plays out in India.
Why? Well, Joey and Kelsey U-Turned the Texans in Episode 9.
It was a cold-hearted move that shocked
everyone, especially the Cheerleaders, whom, you may remember, had teamed up
with the Texans in Episode 8.
“It’s always the quiet ones you have to watch out for,” a
disappointed Krista said of J and K.
With the Texans eliminated – they couldn’t survive
a difficult Speed Bump and a U-Turn – the Cheerleaders are on their own, as are
the other four teams.
FIRST TO WORST:
The elimination of the Texans – and the pool’s
Team Beltway –
may have been in the cards all along.
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| Kelsey asks for directions |
As you remember, the Texans finished first in this season’s
first episode, dominating throughout.
Pool selections were made after that episode, and the pool’s
Team Showers, selecting first, shunned the Texans and picking Joey and Kelsey
instead.
As this Blog discussed in its preview of Episode 2, Team
Showers had history on its side, as the winner of the first leg seldom
survives.
The Texans were strong until the last two episodes and then
they faltered, undone, in part, by their own good will and, of course, by being
U-Turned. Though, to be sure, if Joey and Kelsey were going to U-Turn anyone,
the Texans were the right choice.
ODDS ARE:
Last week’s prediction that Justin and Diana (Team
Green) would stumble in Episode 9 didn’t come true.
 |
| Justin and Diana on their way to a win |
Once again, they cruised to a first-place finish, doing all
of the usual in-India challenges (washing clothes by a river, transporting tin
cans through a congested street) with ease. It was their sixth first place out
of a possible nine.
“The problem is they’re always in front of us,”
Kelsey said, correctly analyzing the situation.
The Race doesn't always follow form – good teams falter, bad
teams come alive – but Justin and Diana, for better or for worse, would seem to
be unbeatable, as much for her patience and smart play as for his encyclopedic knowledge
of the Race.
If you’re keeping score at home and giving one point for a team’s
place in each episode, here’s the breakdown so far, with the fewer points the better:
Justin and Diana ......19
Joey and Kelsey........35
Denise and James.....38
Logan and Chris........44
Cheerleaders..............51
The gap between first and second is impressive, and it would
be even more if Justin and Diana hadn’t finished ninth in the first leg. (What
happened there?)
The scorecard also suggests – indeed it screams – that the
Cheerleaders will be eliminated in Episode 10.
 |
| Logan and Chris quarrel |
However, the odds aren’t that much better for the Paparazzi,
Logan and Chris.
I’m still not convinced they want to be on the race at all. They
carp, the quarrel, they have issues, but they’re not that much fun. Hit the road.
Overheard:
Tiffany: This
game can be so, like, you know, dirty.
Logan: The
friendships probably don’t mean as much now as a million dollars.
Krista: I think
everybody is getting a little out of control now and its bothering me.
Phil: Teams will
face some sensory overload here in Agra.
Joey: My mother
enjoys doing my laundry. I’m not going to tell her ‘no.’
Kelsey: I’m
Christian and Joey is Catholic.
Tanner: It is
what it is.
Logan (to Chris):
Just keep my name out of your mouth.
Josh (flexing): It’s
called a gun show, baby.
Denise: This is
terrible, James Earl; this is worse than terrible.
Tanner: We kind of let our guard down.
Order of finish
Justin and Diana
Joey and Kelsey
Chris and Logan
Krista and Tiffany
Denise and James Earl
Josh and Tanner (eliminated)
