WHAT’S NEW ON PRIMETIME

THE AMAZING RACE

Last week, 9 Teams set out from Norway and traveled to Sweden where they visited the ice bar as well as IKEA and had to do some tedious staff chores. Later, they had to unroll hay bales to search for a clue. It took Lena over 8 hours; in the middle of the night Phil met her and Christy in the field to tell them they’d been eliminated. This week, Hayden and Aaron and Kris and Jon start the race first. But can they keep their lead?

1st Clue: Teams must get to the top of Stockholm’s Town Hall Tower. The tower doesn’t open until 7 am, so teams must wait. Some of the teams (Jonathan/Victoria, Hayden/Aaron, and Kris/Jon) get the wrong info, and don’t show up to traverse the tower until 10am.
2nd Clue: Teams must travel to Dakar in Synagogue (Africa), where they will find the next clue outside of the airport. At this point, all teams arrive at the airport at the same time.
3rd Clue: Read and interpret a poem written by Leopold Sedar Senghor, and then find his grave. All teams encounter problems with the language barrier during this leg, especially in finding different locations and negotiating prices for cab fare. Don and Mary-Jean choose a cab that gets a flat tire. Luckily for them, the cemetery doesn’t open until 7:30am.
4th Clue: Teams must now travel 35 miles north to the village of Kayar, where they will search for a carpentry shop for the next clue.

DETOUR: Stack em up (walk to fish stacking area, carry a basket of fish to the stacking table, where they must be laid out to dry correctly to receive the next clue) or Pile em Up (walk down the beach, choose a fishing boat, and use traditional lines to catch four fish, give them to a guy on the dock for the next clue). On the way to stack em up, we find Jonathan has a passion for children (he gives candy to the little mulatto kids) and he and Victoria plan to have a baby. This couple needs therapy. Hera gets sick on the boat, and Don and Mary-Jean have trouble trying to snag a bite.
5th Clue: Travel by taxi to the pink lake called Lac Rose where the next clue will be found in the salt mounds.

ROAD BLOCK: Only one person may perform this task, and each teammate can compete in a maximum of 6 road blocks. Salt Harvest–wade into a lake and use traditional tools to harvest enough salt to fill a 35 gallon basket on shore. Some competitors get the salt in their eyes and must stop to relieve the pain and regain their vision. Adam (who looks as though he has big muscles) gets beat by all the girls. He tells Rebecca to shut up every time she gives him encouragement, and later threatens to jump off the boat when she says she didn’t appreciate it (last week he threatened to get hit by a train).

PITSTOP: Travel by taxi and ferry to the island Ile De Goree, where they must run through the streets and find their next pit stop. Jonathan and Victoria’s luggage gets stuck in their taxi’s trunk, and by the time the trunk is opened, they’ve missed the first ferry. Don is overwhelmed by Mary-Jean’s strength, and Gus definitely needs to put his shirt on. Order of arrival: Kris/Jon (win 7 night cruise through Western Caribbean), Jonathan/Victoria, Lori/Bolo, Hayden/Aaron, Freddy/Kendra, Adam/Rebecca, Gus/Hera, and finally Don/Mary-Jean, who are permitted to stay, but are stripped of all of their cash and will be denied any funds for the next leg. Next week: Can Don and Mary-Jean overcome the poor house? A tribute to African slaves brings Gus to tears and Lori/Bolo fight with Hayden/Aaron.

THE TEAMS:
Kris/John – Long distance dating for 1 year
Lori/Bolo – Married/Professional Wrestlers
Don/Mary Jean – Married/Grandparents
Hayden/Aaron – Dating/Actors
Gus/Hera – Father/Daughter
Jonathan/Victoria – Married/Entrepreneurs (He’s a dictator)
Freddy/Kendra – Engaged/Models (He’s 10 years older than her)
Adam/Rebecca – Ex/Lovers (trying to rekindle) Hell Boys

GONE HOME:
Avi/Joe – Best Friends (guys)
Meredith/Maria – Best Friends/Roommates
Lena/Kristy – Sisters/Models

THE APPRENTICE 2 Thursday, Sept. 9th, 2004

Last week the teams made candy bars and Sandy and Jen wore cute little red shirts, skirts, and heels, which won them the task. Ivana, who dropped her skirt for money, was unable to defend herself and was fired.

This week, I didn’t watch the whole thing, because job interviews aren’t my cup of tea. Go ahead and check the website if you want the details: http://www.nbc.com/nbc/The_Apprentice_2/. I can tell you that Kevin and Sandy were fired, leaving Jen M and Kelly as this season’s final two. After announcing the final two, Trump got them started on their final tasks: Kelly will manage the Genworth/Trump Polo Cup to help raise money for the Alzheimer’s Association and his employees would be Elizabeth, John and Raj. Jennifer M. will be in charge of the Genworth Charity Basketball Classic to raise money for the NBA’s Read to Achieve program and his employees would be Chris, Pamela and Stacy R

Each project manager would be judged by the same executive. Both competitors were whisked away to their event site by a chauffeur-driven Maybach. See what happens next week during the three hour Season Finale.

The Finalists
Jennifer M (30) – Attorney

You’re Fired!
Rob (32) – Corporate Branding Salesman (Crustacean Nation)
Bradford (33) – Attorney
Stacie J (35) – Restaurateur
Jennifer C (31) – Real Estate Agent
Pamela (32) – Investment Firm Partner
John (24) – Marketing Director
Stacy R (26) – Attorney
Elizabeth (31) – Consulting Firm Owner
Raj (28) – Real Estate Developer (guy in red pants)
Chris (30) – Stockbroker
Wes (28) – Private Wealth Manager
Maria (31) – Marketing Executive
Andy (23) – Recent Harvard Graduate (nationally ranked debater)
Ivana (28) – Venture Capitalist
Sandy (28) – Bridal Salon Owner
Kelly (37) – Software Executive

SURVIVOR:VANUATU – Thursdays – 9pm on CBS

Last week, Eliza won a car at the reward challenge and shared a trip to a resort with Ami and Chris. Chris, Eliza, Twila, and Scout remained allied forces and got rid of Ami. This week, Twila and Eliza have it out verbally. Basically Twila tells them all to go to hell, and to drop it. She’s obviously regretting her choice.

REWARD CHALLENGE: a mud pit, after which one will be eliminated, a pig catch, again one will be eliminated, then solve a tikki puzzle, where a final person will be eliminated. The last two must climb a ladder, traverse a balance beam, slide down a net, and then shoot a slingshot and break three places to light a fire, which will win the game. The winner will take a horse back ride and spend the night at mount assur, which includes food and drink.

First eliminated is Scout, followed by Eliza then Chris (who misplaces a puzzle piece). Twila has problems on the ladder and the net, and can’t make up time, practically handing the prize to Julie, who later selects Chris to go with her to Mount Yassur. They eat foot-long hotdogs and drink beer. Julie makes it clear that she doesn’t want to leave the game. Chris doesn’t tell her no, but rather leads her to believe that he’ll help get rid of Twila. Later, after dark, they hike up to the top of the volcano and watch miniature eruptions. It looks like fireworks. Both castaways are in awe.

Back at camp, Eliza and Twila argue over some buried bananas. Both parties call the other party immature. The whole issue really is immature. Even more immature is Chris’s move to tell Eliza that he’ll help her and Julie get rid of Twila.

IMMUNITY CHALLENGE: Tribe members must listen to stories about some local natives, a Chief and a death ceremony, and then race to five of six different huts, assemble a puzzle and correctly answer questions relating to the stories. If correct, the tribe member obtains a white piece of husk to add to the necklace. If wrong, a black piece is obtained, which must be burned and the tribe member must go back for the right answer. Eliza and Julie are neck and neck going into their last question, but Eliza nails it and wins immunity.

TRIBAL COUNCIL: Chris is the swing vote for either Twila or Julie. In the end he sticks with the old chicks, who he can beat, and gets rid of Julie.

THE SEASON FINALE (Aired Sunday, Dec. 12, 2004 at 9:00pm)

We’re left with Chris, Twila, Scout, and Eliza at the end of two hours; one will be a million dollars richer. Right of the start, Twila calls Eliza out and tells her she’s useless. Chris comforts her though, and reassures her of their their alliance to each other. However, he also reassures his alliance of Scout and Twila.

At the second to last immunity challenge the final four compete in the first ever vertical maze, in which they must collect ten pairs of tiles. The tiles are letters that must be unscrambled for a two word answer. The race goes threefold, with Scout lagging really far behind. Chris and Twila collect their last pair at the same time. Chris is the first to solve the puzzle though, and wins his spot in the final three.

At tribal council we’re reminded that in the first immunity challenge of the season, Chris almost went home because he couldn’t make it across a balance beam. When the count is done Eliza votes for Twila. Twila reciprocates the vote. Scout and Chris join Twila and get rid of the youngest member left; Eliza joins the jury, but not without a death look for Chris.

Back at camp, everyone is relishing in the peace and quiet without Eliza, and Chris admires the stars. In accordance with tradition, the final three endure a rite of passage in which they travel to Aritoka Island, the most sacred island (and burial grounds) in Vanuatu. They will visit the snuffed torches of each of their former tribe mates and then they will then visit the burial site of the dead Vanuatu chief (from the story presented in the last episode), and make an offering. Following the ceremony, the castaways take part in their last immunity challenge, one of endurance and will power in which they stand, barefoote on two small blocks of wood (stumps) in the archer position, holding and bow and arrow ready to shoot. If the string of the bow is released, the arrow will pierce a marker and the castaway will forgo immunity. If at any time the tribe member’s feet touch the platform on which the blocks are set, the also will forgo immunity.

The sun starts to rise, and beads of sweat start to appear on the brows of our survivors. Scout is the first to pierce her marker and be eliminated. Twila continuously shakes on the stumps, and must fight to keep her balance, Chris does as well. Chris starts trying to make a deal, telling Twila that his word is good. Later, they both agree that it’s in their best interests (both) to stay on the posts. After an hour and seven minutes, Twila losses her balance and in an attempt to regain it, she end up piercing her marker. Chris is the first member of the final two. Chris plays the honesty card with Scout, and find out that Twila and Scout did NOT have a pact to go beyond the final four. Twila gave her alliance only to Chris, and he feels guilt that he doubted her. I wonder though, why Scout wouldn’t lie and say Twila did make a pact with her, so that Chris would take her to the final two.

At tribal council the jury enters and Eliza shoots Chris the death glare again. Chris admits Scout and Twila played the game very differently, ranging from passive honesty, to overly aggressive willingnessto do and say anything. However, he says he won’t use this to make his decision; he’ll only looks at how he’s played, because he has to make it to the end. That said, Chris votes off Scout, leaving Twila and Chris as the final two. In an attempt to enjoy their last moment at camp on the last day, Chris and Twila sit together in the hammock, and it snaps beneath their weight. Good stuff!

At the grand inquisition (the best part of every season), Chris sums up his qualifications as being the only one to overcome tremendous odds. Twila reciprocates by saying she deserves it because she played good and hard, and that she needs the million dollars to better her life. Eliza takes the floor and calls both competitors deceptive liars. Then she demands an apology from them. What a hypocrite. Julie cries. Leann convicts Twila for her deception and asks Chris why she should abandon her commitment to the women. Ami convicts Twila for her ability to falsely swear on her son but her inability to make a false apology to Eliza. Sarge tells Chris that Twila needs his help, and Chris reciprocates by saying it doesn’t matter because the two of them will sit and have drinks and be good friends regardless of the outcome of the game. Scout is classy for not convicting the final two, but rather accepting them for who they are.

In closing, Twila explains that she didn’t represent who she really is while playing the game; that the game changed her into a person she doesn’t like. Twila again, apologizes. Chris addresses each jury member separately and tells them that they each deserve to be in the final two more than he himself does. Chris explains to all the women that they’re sitting in the jury because he was selfish. He reiterates to Chad and Sarge that no matter how the vote goes, they’re still friends. Chris gets votes from Sarge and Eliza, while Twila gets one from Scout and Ami (of course, they’re both quite feminist). The votes from Chad, Julie, and Leann are left to be read out by Jeff, live, from the United States. This season Jeff goes bushwhacking, takes a plane ride, paraglides down to the ground and then takes a motorcycle into Hollywood to read the votes. Supreme Cheese. The final count is five to two for Chris.

If there are any other shows you want updates on, or any comments you wish to make, please email me at abaldwin@shaw.ca!