gambitch - now available in blue
Our constant efforts to reinvent ourselves reveal how much we fear our own images.

Friday, March 25, 2005

So, Susan and Patrick were eliminated in the previous episode of The Amazing Race after the pessimistic son decided he felt like giving up. Public sentiment seems to lean towards some degree of dislike for the son, given how he and his mother were bickering a bit in the last two legs. Big deal. This happens quite a bit with parent-child teams anyway so there's nothing particularly new in that.

The only notable highlight was that Rob and Amber managed to catch up - barely - on the first plane and therefore charged to first spot. Meanwhile Lynn and Alex totally messed up, trying to slip to the front of the train (but Rob and Amber spotted that) and then getting a bad boat. I'd call it bad karma for obsessing too much on beating the Survivor alumni.

Otherwise it was mostly an average leg, although it is rather curious that we've done four legs now and they still have not crossed the Atlantic. Considering that Season 6 made a quick beeline for Iceland in the very first leg, and that perhaps no other edition of the Race spent more than two legs in the Americas, it is rather curious to see them hopping among Peru, Chile and Argentina. Of course, that will have to change soon, but it does put into question whether there's some kind of budget squeeze going on at CBS.

People everywhere else talked of watching a TV preview that featured blood next week, apparently a result of some road accident. Over here, our trailer simply talked about Rob and Amber's jaunt so far, and whether Amber is just a cardboard cutout. Evidently the bigwigs here have a thing against showing blood in trailers. I just hope the censorship will not extend to the show tape itself.

They've mosaic-ed out frontal nudity before, with some girl (Arianne I think it was from Season 3) stripping in a cab to change into a swimsuit, and Jon (of Kelly and Jon in Season 4) completing the final Roadblock in the buff so he wouldn't get his underwear wet. But you can't really mosaic out blood, so the only way to not let it show is to cut the tape. And I really don't want that because this is reality TV. It's a game show, and America with its FCC and all watches it, so we should not have problems with the US edit over here.

gambitch [ 9:40 AM]

Thursday, March 24, 2005

The fantasy-leaguers must be really adrool following the morning latest. Me? Just go get a result, I say.

In a parallel universe, I might go on and talk a bit about Bush's desire to put Wolfowitz into the World Bank despite doubts by a good number of observers. I might examine the Schiavo situation and have a laugh about the Republicans' politicization of what appears to be a straightforward family conflict. I might discuss the latest casino developments in the Pacific Rim and shake my head at how obvious it is that Singapore's leaders are set to arrange for the construction of one at a downtown marina area, and not on its southern island holiday area as originally claimed.

But in this universe, I don't think I really care that much any longer. These things make amusing watching, sure, but that's about it.

On to the TV, then.

gambitch [ 5:12 PM]

PREVIOUS EPISODES

04/20/2003 - 04/27/2003 04/27/2003 - 05/04/2003 05/04/2003 - 05/11/2003 05/11/2003 - 05/18/2003 05/18/2003 - 05/25/2003 05/25/2003 - 06/01/2003 06/01/2003 - 06/08/2003 06/08/2003 - 06/15/2003 06/15/2003 - 06/22/2003 06/22/2003 - 06/29/2003 06/29/2003 - 07/06/2003 07/06/2003 - 07/13/2003 07/13/2003 - 07/20/2003 07/20/2003 - 07/27/2003 07/27/2003 - 08/03/2003 08/03/2003 - 08/10/2003 08/10/2003 - 08/17/2003 09/07/2003 - 09/14/2003 09/14/2003 - 09/21/2003 09/21/2003 - 09/28/2003 09/28/2003 - 10/05/2003 10/05/2003 - 10/12/2003 10/12/2003 - 10/19/2003 10/19/2003 - 10/26/2003 11/02/2003 - 11/09/2003 11/09/2003 - 11/16/2003 06/06/2004 - 06/13/2004 06/13/2004 - 06/20/2004 06/20/2004 - 06/27/2004 06/27/2004 - 07/04/2004 07/04/2004 - 07/11/2004 07/11/2004 - 07/18/2004 07/18/2004 - 07/25/2004 07/25/2004 - 08/01/2004 08/01/2004 - 08/08/2004 08/08/2004 - 08/15/2004 08/15/2004 - 08/22/2004 08/22/2004 - 08/29/2004 08/29/2004 - 09/05/2004 09/05/2004 - 09/12/2004 09/12/2004 - 09/19/2004 09/19/2004 - 09/26/2004 09/26/2004 - 10/03/2004 10/03/2004 - 10/10/2004 10/10/2004 - 10/17/2004 10/17/2004 - 10/24/2004 10/24/2004 - 10/31/2004 10/31/2004 - 11/07/2004 11/07/2004 - 11/14/2004 11/14/2004 - 11/21/2004 11/21/2004 - 11/28/2004 11/28/2004 - 12/05/2004 12/05/2004 - 12/12/2004 12/12/2004 - 12/19/2004 12/19/2004 - 12/26/2004 12/26/2004 - 01/02/2005 01/02/2005 - 01/09/2005 01/09/2005 - 01/16/2005 01/16/2005 - 01/23/2005 01/23/2005 - 01/30/2005 01/30/2005 - 02/06/2005 02/06/2005 - 02/13/2005 02/13/2005 - 02/20/2005 02/20/2005 - 02/27/2005 02/27/2005 - 03/06/2005 03/06/2005 - 03/13/2005 03/13/2005 - 03/20/2005 03/20/2005 - 03/27/2005 03/27/2005 - 04/03/2005 04/03/2005 - 04/10/2005 04/10/2005 - 04/17/2005 04/17/2005 - 04/24/2005 04/24/2005 - 05/01/2005 05/01/2005 - 05/08/2005 05/08/2005 - 05/15/2005 05/15/2005 - 05/22/2005 05/22/2005 - 05/29/2005 05/29/2005 - 06/05/2005 06/05/2005 - 06/12/2005 06/12/2005 - 06/19/2005 06/19/2005 - 06/26/2005 06/26/2005 - 07/03/2005 07/03/2005 - 07/10/2005 07/10/2005 - 07/17/2005 07/17/2005 - 07/24/2005 07/24/2005 - 07/31/2005 07/31/2005 - 08/07/2005 08/07/2005 - 08/14/2005 08/14/2005 - 08/21/2005 08/21/2005 - 08/28/2005 08/28/2005 - 09/04/2005 09/04/2005 - 09/11/2005 09/11/2005 - 09/18/2005 09/18/2005 - 09/25/2005 09/25/2005 - 10/02/2005 10/02/2005 - 10/09/2005 10/09/2005 - 10/16/2005 10/16/2005 - 10/23/2005 10/23/2005 - 10/30/2005 10/30/2005 - 11/06/2005 11/06/2005 - 11/13/2005 11/13/2005 - 11/20/2005 11/20/2005 - 11/27/2005 11/27/2005 - 12/04/2005 12/04/2005 - 12/11/2005 12/11/2005 - 12/18/2005 12/18/2005 - 12/25/2005 12/25/2005 - 01/01/2006 01/01/2006 - 01/08/2006 01/08/2006 - 01/15/2006 01/15/2006 - 01/22/2006 01/22/2006 - 01/29/2006 01/29/2006 - 02/05/2006 02/05/2006 - 02/12/2006 02/12/2006 - 02/19/2006 02/19/2006 - 02/26/2006 02/26/2006 - 03/05/2006 03/05/2006 - 03/12/2006 03/12/2006 - 03/19/2006 03/19/2006 - 03/26/2006 03/26/2006 - 04/02/2006 04/02/2006 - 04/09/2006 04/09/2006 - 04/16/2006 04/16/2006 - 04/23/2006 04/23/2006 - 04/30/2006 04/30/2006 - 05/07/2006 05/07/2006 - 05/14/2006 05/14/2006 - 05/21/2006 05/21/2006 - 05/28/2006 05/28/2006 - 06/04/2006 06/04/2006 - 06/11/2006 06/11/2006 - 06/18/2006 06/18/2006 - 06/25/2006 06/25/2006 - 07/02/2006 07/02/2006 - 07/09/2006 07/09/2006 - 07/16/2006 07/16/2006 - 07/23/2006 07/23/2006 - 07/30/2006 07/30/2006 - 08/06/2006 08/06/2006 - 08/13/2006 08/13/2006 - 08/20/2006 08/20/2006 - 08/27/2006 08/27/2006 - 09/03/2006 09/03/2006 - 09/10/2006 09/10/2006 - 09/17/2006 09/17/2006 - 09/24/2006 09/24/2006 - 10/01/2006 10/01/2006 - 10/08/2006 10/08/2006 - 10/15/2006 10/15/2006 - 10/22/2006 10/22/2006 - 10/29/2006 10/29/2006 - 11/05/2006 11/05/2006 - 11/12/2006 11/12/2006 - 11/19/2006 11/19/2006 - 11/26/2006 11/26/2006 - 12/03/2006 12/03/2006 - 12/10/2006 12/10/2006 - 12/17/2006 12/17/2006 - 12/24/2006 12/24/2006 - 12/31/2006 12/31/2006 - 01/07/2007 01/07/2007 - 01/14/2007 01/14/2007 - 01/21/2007 01/21/2007 - 01/28/2007 01/28/2007 - 02/04/2007 02/04/2007 - 02/11/2007 02/11/2007 - 02/18/2007 02/18/2007 - 02/25/2007 02/25/2007 - 03/04/2007 03/04/2007 - 03/11/2007 03/11/2007 - 03/18/2007 03/18/2007 - 03/25/2007 03/25/2007 - 04/01/2007 04/01/2007 - 04/08/2007 04/08/2007 - 04/15/2007 04/15/2007 - 04/22/2007 04/22/2007 - 04/29/2007 04/29/2007 - 05/06/2007 05/06/2007 - 05/13/2007 05/13/2007 - 05/20/2007 05/20/2007 - 05/27/2007