Posted on October 27th, 2009 by Princess Kitty in Biggest Loser
Aired 10-20-09
The show opened with the Blue Team returning to the house after the elimination of Coach Mo. The Black Team was surprised, and disappointed, by the news. Tracey started crying (there’s a shock) about the looks on people’s faces as she walked in the room. Shay called that was her cue to leave the room. She was over everything on campus being about Tracey.
Challenge
The group met up with host Alison Sweeney at night at what appeared to be a beach. She informed them that each team had four keys buried in the sand. They had to dig up all four to open their team’s treasure chest and reveal their mystery prize. Even though Tracey has been cleared to exercise, she and Abby (who has a stress fracture in her leg) had to sit out the challenge. The teams were uneven so Amanda also sat out for the Black Team. The keys were actually in large, heavy boxes buried deep in the sand. It took a lot of effort to get to them. Black Team Danny was the first to retrieve his key. He then went to help Daniel. Firefighter Allen followed with a key for the Blue Team. Rudy quickly got another one for Blue with some help from Allen. Daniel’s key was next so both teams had two down and two to go. Allen and Rudy finished digging out Liz’s key. Allen then dug out Rebecca’s key and they won the challenge.
The prize was a trip home OR the ability to send the Black Team home. They chose to send the Black Team away. Daniel described going home as exciting but also sucky.
Each Black Team member was greeted by a big welcoming committee and a lot of tears as they arrived home. As usual, I was most touched by sweet, little Abby. She wanted to see her mom and dad who she described as pillars of strength after having lost her family in a car accident. Her mom said it was great to see more life and love in her daughter.
Back at the ranch, trainer Bob Harper was taking great delight in beating the crap out of his team and they all seemed fine with it. That’s why they stayed. Of course, Bob also found time for ….
Product Placement Alert 1: Milk. Bob explained the benefits of milk to Liz and Tracey.
To a person, the Black Team started their week trying to be really good but some faced unexpected challenges from their families. Shay and Dina watched as their husbands ordered the same kinds of foods at restaurants that they did before BL. Shay said it was disappointing. She was also upset watching her step-children eating junk because she knew they were following in her footsteps. Dina was close to tears talking about how she felt watching her husband down a lot of fatty foods and wondered why she didn’t stop him. She vowed that things were going to change for her whole family.
Shay met up with her girlfriends and we learned that being home wasn’t going to stop …
Product Placement Alert 2: having lunch at Subway. She gave her friends suggestions on healthy things to order.
Jillian Michaels gave us a tip that I love – using a 1/4 cup of avocado on your sandwich instead of mayo. It really does work.
Bob took his Blue Team to the LA Regional Food Bank where they helped pack backpacks full of food. It was to help kids who are part of the school lunch program get healthy meals over the weekend.
The Black Team returned in time for the Last Chance Workout and Daniel got a particularly brutal beating from Jillian. She was upset because he seemed to be working below his potential. She knew there was something going on. He finally broke down in tears as he realized that his family dynamic was a big part of his weight gain – and most of it was on him. His mom tried and tried to help him get things under control but, at the time, he saw it as her finding fault and not accepting him. He rebelled by eating more. He was realizing that his mom did what she did out of love and he felt horrible about the way he reacted to her. Jill responded by saying that his mom’s still here and he can start showing her his love right now. It was a good moment. We were watching a kid grow up and take responsibility.
Weigh In
They weighed in as teams and the team with the lowest percentage of weight lost was going to have to send someone home. Allen was the first on the scale for Blue.
Blue: Allen lost 8 pounds and Rebecca lost 5. Allen was happy and Rebecca was disappointed. Tracey lost 4 pounds and was very frustrated. Liz also lost 4 pounds. Blue was definitely feeling down. Rudy was the last to weigh in and they needed him to have a big number – and he did. Rudy lost 14(!) pounds. He’s lost 87 pounds in six weeks. Blue lost 35 pounds for a total of 2.65%.
Black: Black had to lose more than 45 pounds to be safe. Amanda lost 6 pounds and was amazed. Shay lost 5 pounds and declared that she refused to be disappointed with 5 – which was a big clue that she was at least a little disappointed. Abby lost 4 pounds and was genuinely pleased. It affirmed to her that losing weight can be done in “real life”. Dina lost 5 pounds and was pleased but also a little nervous. With just Daniel and Danny left to weigh in, they needed 26 more pounds to win. Danny got on the scale next and lost 15 of those pounds. He was thrilled and Jill was shocked and proud. Daniel needed to lose 11 pounds. He got on the scale and lost ….. nothing. He actually gained a pound. How the heck did that happen? The room was in shock. He said he didn’t understand why it happened. He also didn’t want his fellow teammates to think he’d gone home and slacked off.
Black lost. Someone was going home and they had 60 minutes to decide. Danny was immune because he had the highest percent of loss for Black. Daniel, Shay and Dina made pleas to stay. Oddly, we didn’t see Amanda or Abby say anything. I’m guessing they did make a speech but they were edited out for time.
In the elimination room, Daniel went first and voted for Dina. He said he thought she could do it at home. Dina voted for Daniel because he’s had two chances to be on the ranch. Abby voted for Dina and Danny voted for Daniel. Amanda voted for Dina leaving it up to Shay. There was no way Shay was going to vote off Daniel so it was Dina heading home. Dina was kind and sweet about the whole thing.
Dina was a girl who needed to gain confidence as much as she needed to lose weight. In her “where they are now” clip we learned that she’s lost 65 pounds. Maybe even more important to her, she can now do the platform jumps that confounded her at the ranch. We also saw her get a makeover and she looked like a different person.
Next Week: The teams go head to head against each other at the weigh in and it looks like Amanda has a meltdown.
Full episodes and bonus clips are available at NBC’s website here:
We learned in the recap that Kelly’s foot injury the previous night was really painful and dad Ozzy had to take her to the hospital. Host Tom Bergeron informed us that it was a sprain and Kelly will be able to continue in the competition.
The encore dance was the top scorer from the night before – Donny & Kym’s Tango. It was still quite hot.
Norah Jones Musical Performance 1: Norah performed “It’s Gonna Be” and it was a pretty cool song – very 60’s retro. There were four new dancers accompanying the number and they did an odd dance that kept making me think of “The Bride of Frankenstein”. By the way, Norah looked fab.
Tom began the results by revealing the fates of the three couples who got the top judges’ scores:
Mark Dacascos & Lacey Schwimmer - Safe.
Donny Osmond & Kym Johnson - Safe.
Mya & Dmitry Chaplin - Safe.
Montage – The story of a DWTS Monday. No real surprises here. Kelly is a social butterfly and Aaron loves craft services.
Next to learn their fates were the three couples who tied with a score of 24:
Joanna Krupa & Derek Hough – In Jeopardy. Poor Joanna saw it coming. I think she’s been beating herself up over the stumble with substitute partner Maksim Chmerkovskiy.
Kelly Osbourne & Louis van Amstel – Safe.
Aaron Carter & Karina Smirnoff – In jeopardy. I was really hoping Aaron would get a break this week.
After some commercials, Tom revealed the fates of the male and female celebrities with the lowest judges’ scores:
Michael Irvin & Anna Demidova – Safe.
Natalie Coughlin & Alec Mazo – In jeopardy.
Norah Jones Musical Performance 2: Norah performed her classic “Come Away with Me” while Jonathan Roberts and Anna Trebunskaya danced. The whole thing was quite lovely. The song was acoustic and the dance was very happy and romantic. I’ve always liked Jonathan but I’m shocked by how much I’ve warmed up to Anna this season. Tom revealed afterwards that “Come Away with Me” had been Jonathan and Anna’s wedding song. Awww. I love that.
The fates of the final two couples were revealed:
Louie Vito & Chelsie Hightower – Safe.
Melissa Joan Hart & Mark Ballas – In Jeopardy.
Macy’s Stars of Dance: The Michael Jackson Tribute. It was introduced by LaToya Jackson who was in the Ballroom with brother Jermaine and mom Katherine. It was a fantastic tribute dance – very happy and positive.
The four couples left in jeopardy took the stage to learn their final fate. Melissa & Mark and Joanna & Derek were safe. Aaron & Karina and Natalie & Alec were the bottom two. The judges were clearly upset by this. Len Goodman said he understood that people like to support the underdog but justice should prevail and neither of these couples deserved to go home.
In the end it was Natalie & Alec leaving. She looked so disappointed. Natalie said she really loved the experience and maybe she just didn’t show that enough to the audience. I felt so bad because she looked upset and it really wasn’t fair. Natalie probably wasn’t going to win but this exit was too soon.
Full episodes of DWTS are available at ABC’s website here:
Oh, Oh! Joanna came down the DWTS staircase with Maks instead of Derek. We learned that Derek was out with the flu and Maks had stepped in to partner and train Joanna.
This week the couples had to take on either the Argentine Tango or the Paso Doble AND do The Hustle as a group dance.
Natalie Coughlin & Alec Mazo: Alec wanted to bring back the tough, competitive side to Natalie for the Paso – after several weeks of trying to soften her up. I thought she did fine with the character but they had a tough song choice. “American Woman” just doesn’t say “Paso Doble” to me. Head judge Len Goodman called Natalie a very accomplished dancer but added that she needs to work more on character and chemistry. Bruno Tonioli also thought character was lacking and Carrie Ann Inaba felt Natalie wasn’t carrying her movements past her body. Plus, she thought she saw a lift. Scores: Carrie Ann – 7, Len – 8, Bruno – 7. Total = 22.
Aaron Carter & Karina Smirnoff: Aaron was bummed about being in the bottom two and about comments Carrie Ann had made saying his dancing turned people off. During their Tango rehearsals, Karina told Aaron he had to be sexy and turn her on which wouldn’t be easy because she’s “a cold-blooded bitch.” Her words and she said them with a great delivery. Karina also brought in some additional coaches to help Aaron develop a more mature style. I thought Aaron did a very good job with the Tango. It was controlled and grown-up. Bruno praised Aaron for having done just as the judges had asked. He added that it was a bit like watching Robert Pattinson Tango in “Twilight”. Carrie Ann literally kissed and made up with Aaron saying he looked grounded and centered. Len said it was flirty and dirty and he loved it. I loved seeing how Aaron’s face lit up as he finally got some praise from these three. Scores: Carrie Ann – 8, Len – 8, Bruno – 8. Total = 24.
Michael Irvin & Anna Demidova: Michael was shocked that he didn’t end up in the bottom two last week. He then proceeded to have one of the funniest rehearsal clips of all time. For the Paso, Anna said she wanted Michael to move as if he were holding a coin between his butt cheeks. Michael responded by actually putting a nickel there and holding on. It was Michael’s best dance so far (and he looked great in his chest-baring jacket) but it did lack sharpness. Carrie Ann said it was her favorite of his dances because it had intensity, authority and dignity. Len also enjoyed it and Bruno told Michael to keep the nickel in his butt because it was working for him. Michael then presented Bruno with the nickel and we were all grossed out a bit. Scores: Carrie Ann – 7, Len – 7, Bruno – 7. Total = 21.
Mya & Dmitry Chaplin: Poor Dmitry. He got kicked where it really, really hurts several times while teaching Mya some lifts for their Tango. The finished product was fantastic. Once again, Mya looked like she was one of the pros. Len finally was happy with one of their dances! Bruno called the dance “intricate like lace” but thought it lacked some emotional connection and Carrie Ann agreed. Scores: Carrie Ann – 9, Len – 9, Bruno – 9. Total = 27.
Mark Dacascos & Lacey Schwimmer: Given that Mark is a martial artist both he and Lacey thought the aggressive nature of the Paso would be a good fit for him. It ended up being quite a difficult character for Mark during the rehearsals. He seemed to have it all figured out, though, for the performance. He looked great in the Paso and his movements were extremely sharp and crisp. I think it was his best dance. Bruno said Mark was turning into a red devil. Carrie Ann said Mark was focused and the dance was very exciting. Len thought Mark had passion, power and performance. Scores: Carrie Ann – 9, Len – 9, Bruno – 8. Total = 26.
Donny Osmond & Kym Johnson: Their rehearsal clip highlighted how busy Donny is with DWTS and his Vegas show with Marie. Clearly, though, he and Kym did find time to work on their Tango. It left me wondering what the heck had got into my Donny. It was the hottest he’s been since I was 12. Carrie Ann called it a transformative dance for Donny and “so darn sexy”. Len loved the intensity and declared it Donny’s best dance. Bruno called it brooding, moody and dangerous and, yes, they shared another moment. Scores: Carrie Ann – 10, Len – 9, Bruno – 10. Total = 29. They were beyond thrilled.
Louie Vito & Chelsie Hightower: After last week’s tough scores, Louie felt he owed it to the fans that kept him in the competition to go all out with the Tango. Louie did seem to be back in form for this one and Chelsie’s choreography was really good. It actually did tell a story. Len said he wasn’t expecting much but found himself pleasantly surprised. Bruno also thought it was great storytelling but cautioned Louie that he was still “stepping through” the number rather than dancing it. Carrie Ann said that she liked that Louie was really partnering Chelsie. Scores: Carrie Ann – 7, Len – 8, Bruno – 7. Total = 22.
Melissa Joan Hart & Mark Ballas: Derek wasn’t the only one ill this week. Mark was also under the weather and it limited his rehearsal time with Melissa. Anna Trebunskaya stepped in to help with the training. Melissa found it helpful to get a woman’s point of view on the Tango. I thought it started off weak but Melissa’s movements got much sharper as she went along. Bruno said that he could see that Melissa lost her steps several times and he didn’t really believe the character. Carrie Ann disagreed about the character saying she saw it from beginning to end but, yes, there were some stumbles. Len appreciated how Melissa coped with the difficult choreography but it did lack some seduction. Scores: Carrie Ann – 8, Len – 8, Bruno – 7. Total = 23.
Kelly Osbourne & Louis van Amstel: Kelly and Louis did their Paso Doble to an Ozzy Osbourne song but, oddly enough, the rocker chick persona didn’t seem like the best fit for Kelly. The angry and aggressive dances don’t work as well for her. She did settle in to the character a bit as the dance progressed. Daddy was there and he seemed pleased – as any father would. Carrie Ann said Kelly has it all but she’s still losing her intensity at points and looking scared. Len thought there was more authority in Kelly’s dancing and Bruno praised Kelly for not having gone wrong with the difficult choreography. Scores: Carrie Ann – 8, Len – 8, Bruno – 8. Total = 24.
Joanna Krupa & Maksim Chmerkovskiy: From the clip it looked like when Maks came in to sub for Derek, he and Joanna decided it would be better to start their Tango from scratch rather than pick up where Derek left off. Maks was impressed with how fast Joanna picked up the steps but it may really have been too much for her. They were looking quite stunning together until a misstep almost put Maks on his rear end. Joanna did dance through it without breaking character. She looked pretty disappointed during the judges’ comments. Bruno said it was fabulous and it was a shame about the stumble. Len thought it was a great job under the circumstances. Carrie Ann also thought it was great for a short time together but suggested Joanna work on her flexibility. Derek was backstage waiting for them and said he was better – but not yet 100%. Scores: Carrie Ann – 8, Len – 8, Bruno – 8. Total = 24.
The Hustle: Before the dance began we found out that Kelly had hurt her foot during the Paso and would be doing this dance barefoot. This was an old school 70’s Hustle with choreography by Mark’s dad, Corky Ballas. It was certainly a memorable number. The girls looked cute but the guys were horrifying. They had awful wigs and sideburns. Mark, Aaron and Mya seemed particularly comfortable with the style, as did Donny who was clearly flashing back to his “Donny & Marie” days. Bruno called it sublime and ridiculous. The judges didn’t get to score this dance.
It was a particularly good night of dancing. We ended with Donny & Kym in the top spot and Michael & Anna at the bottom of the leader board. I’m thinking the clock is ticking for their time on the show.
Full episodes of DWTS are available at ABC’s website here:
Posted on October 24th, 2009 by Princess Kitty in Amazing Race
Aired 10-18-09
We picked up in Phnom Penh, Cambodia after the heartbreaking elimination of Zev & Justin. They, technically, won the leg but had to pack up and leave because they lost their travel documents. This meant that brothers Sam & Dan moved into the top spot and were the first to depart at 12:25PM. The clue instructed the teams to fly to the Persian Gulf and locate the world’s tallest building. They had to figure out that this meant going to the Burj Dubai – a building nearly twice the height of the Empire State Building. Once they got to the building, they had to find a fountain and sign up for one of two groups going up to the 124th floor to find the next clue. The brothers were hopeful that leaving first would give them a good chance at winning a leg for real.
Harlem Globetrotters, Flight Time & Big Easy, were the second team to depart at 12:27PM. Husband and wife, Brian & Ericka, were 3rd at 12:30PM. Brian called the race a “big game of Karma” so they were trying to be nice and helpful to everyone. I was really impressed that Ericka knew that the tallest building was in Dubai without having to look it up. Father and son, Gary & Matt, followed at 12:35PM. Dating couple Meghan & Cheyne were in the 5th spot leaving at 12:37PM.
Sam & Dan arrived at the airport and actually tried to get tickets to “the Persian Gulf”. Luckily for them, Brian & Ericka showed up to explain that they really wanted to get to Dubai. Engaged couple Lance & Keri were in the 6th spot departing at 12:47PM. These two are quite a pair but they actually had a cute moment as Keri talked about how nothing could ever tear them apart and Lance added that they also had a lot of non-refundable deposits on the wedding.
Newly dating couple, Mika & Canaan, were 7th departing at 12:49PM. Mika doesn’t like heights and, when Canaan made a little crack about her needing to get over that, we could see that the bloom was starting to fade on this relationship. In last place were poker players Maria & Tiffany who left at 12:55PM. They were in the race only because of Zev & Justin’s misfortune but felt they could still be real contenders.
All the teams ended up on the same flight to Dubai by way of Bangkok. It was a race reboot. Once they arrived, things got off to a good start for Maria & Tiffany as they were the first to arrive at the fountain. They were joined in group one by Brian & Ericka, Sam & Dan and Meghan & Cheyne.
Meanwhile, Canaan was doing a fabulous job of acting like the ugly American. He had a major tantrum when their cab driver didn’t know the location of the fountain. It made me cringe. They ended up being the first team to sign up for group two. Lance & Keri, Flight Time & Big Easy and Gary & Matt joined them.
The first group headed up to the 124th floor at 5:30AM and the second group followed at 5:45AM. The excursion turned out to be anticlimactic. They just got off the elevator and walked over to get the clue. Nothing else. The only good part of it was hearing Brian refer to Meghan & Cheyne as “Team Malibu Ken and Barbie”. The next clue instructed the teams to find a pool of marked cars in the Dubai Mall parking structure. They had to drive the cars into the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve which looked exactly like one would picture the desert looking. At the Reserve, they’d have to take a ride across the sand in a 4×4 to the next clue. There was also a Fast Forward in the envelope. A Fast Forward is a task that only one team can complete and it allows them to skip everything else and go straight to the Pit Stop. For the FF, a team had to find the Dubai Autodrome – basically a big race track. One member of the team would have to drive a racecar around the track in under 45 seconds. Meghan & Cheyne laid claim to the FF immediately and no one challenged them for it.
Meanwhile, the other teams headed to the parking garage and found the cars with relative ease – except for Lance & Keri. They knew they’d gone in the opposite direction of everyone else but still went their own (wrong) way. Once they finally found a car, they proceeded to get lost (and bicker) on their way to the Reserve. They weren’t alone in this as Mika & Canaan also got lost.
At the Reserve, Brian & Ericka, Maria & Tiffany and Sam & Dan arrived together. They found a Roadblock.
Roadblock
One member of the team had to search the desert for urns buried in the sand and filled with water. To up the frustration, a bunch of urns with no water were also buried. They had to find enough water to fill a traditional bag. Once the bag was presented to a Bedouin and his camels, they’d get the next clue. Brian, Tiffany and Dan took the challenge. Big Easy and Matt soon joined in the hunt.
Meanwhile, Cheyne easily handled the race track while Meghan cried at the finish line. I’m not really sure why she was crying. She said something about not being in control of everything, but I’m thinking the desert heat was just getting to her. For winning the FF, they got to ride in a Maserati to the Pit Stop at the Souk Madinat Jumeirah.
Brian was the first to find water in the desert. He stuck with his Karma code and whispered the location to Tiffany and Dan as he headed back to the camels. He and Ericka got the next clue taking them to a facility called Ski Dubai – an indoor ski resort. On their way to the snow, they passed Mika & Canaan and gave them directions to the Reserve. Ericka said that Brian was much nicer than her and, despite what people might expect from a former Miss America, she can pull the claws out when she wants.
Maria and Dan found the water Brian directed them to but, as they were leaving the Reserve, Maria ran over something and punched a hole in the radiator of her car. The poker players’ alliance with the brothers was still going strong and Sam & Dan waited with them until the replacement car arrived.
Meghan & Cheyne checked in first at the Pit Stop. Host Phil Keoghan informed them they’d won a trip for two to Jamaica. Things were looking good for Malibu Ken & Barbie.
Lance & Keri finally arrived at the Reserve and found only Canaan still searching for water.
On the way to Ski Dubai, Brian missed an exit and it was Gary & Matt who arrived first and found the Detour.
Detour
The choices were “Build a Snowman” or “Find a Snowman”. In “Build” the teams had to carry snow outside into the heat and build a snowman before the snow melted. In “Find” they had to sled down the indoor mountain and then dig through a mound of snow in search of a tiny toy snowman. The screen graphic showed it was 28 degrees in the resort and 120 degrees outside. That’ll steam up your glasses. Gary & Matt opted to dig for the toy snowman as did Brian & Ericka, Sam & Dan, Maria & Tiffany and Flight Time & Big Easy who all arrived soon after. Proving there might be something to Karma after all; Ericka was the first to find a snowman and seemed to do it pretty quickly. She and Brian were on their way to the Pit Stop.
Meanwhile, Canaan found water and Lance & Keri fell further behind. Even after Lance completed the task, things got worse as they got lost again looking for the ski resort. It was pretty clear that the race was coming to an end for these two. The show started to give them the sympathetic edit and, I can’t believe I’m saying this, they were almost likeable. At the same time, we watched as Mika & Canaan also got lost and they (especially Canaan) were becoming more and more obnoxious.
Gary & Matt and Maria & Tiffany abandoned the search and headed out into the heat to build snowmen.
Brian & Ericka checked in 2nd.
Sam & Dan also decided to switch to the “Build” task and, as soon as they left, the Globetrotters found a snowman and were on their way to the Pit Stop.
Gary & Matt finished building their snowman just as Mika & Canaan started.
Flight Time & Big Easy were 3rd.
Gary & Matt were 4th.
Sam & Dan were 5th.
The editing made it appear that Lance & Keri were arriving at Ski Dubai as Mika & Canaan were leaving but I suspect they were much further behind than that.
Maria & Tiffany were team number 6.
Mika & Canaan were 7th.
Lance & Keri were last and they knew it as they approached Phil and the mat. I have to say, I wouldn’t want to have dinner and drinks with these two but, as a couple, they make sense and actually had some good moments in this episode. I won’t miss them, but they did get some redemption.
Next Week: Canaan continues his descent into jerkdom as it looks like he actually tries to push a terrified Mika down a giant waterslide.
Full episodes and bonus clips of TAR are available at CBS’ website here:
Posted on October 18th, 2009 by Princess Kitty in Biggest Loser
Aired 10-13-09
There was no recap or rehashing of the previous week’s elimination. The episode opened with a Temptation.
Temptation
Host Alison Sweeney informed the group that they were about to go Blue vs. Black. That meant that those who were currently paired up might find themselves on opposing teams. The winner of this Temptation was going to be the one to pick the new teams. An enormous “Wheel of Fortune” was set up with 36 spaces that each contained a covered silver tray. One of the trays had the golden ticket that would give the power to choose. The other 35 contained either cash or food. Participation was voluntary and original Blue Team members Dina and Rudy were the first to step up. Eventually they all joined in except for sweet Abby. She said that nothing on the wheel played a part in what she ultimately wanted to get out of all of this.
The first person to spin was Rudy. He landed on a 1000 calorie piece of cake. And yes, he had to eat it. Rebecca followed and got a 280 calorie donut. Next up was Allen (a tiny 100 calorie cupcake) and Danny (a 780 calorie giant cupcake). Then it was time for good ole’ Tracey to take a spin. Everyone’s nightmare was that she’d get control of the game again – and she did. Coach Mo described Tracey getting the golden ticket as “supernatural”. Personally, I had to wonder about it. This was the dream scenario for the producers of this show. I know I would have been crawling under that wheel to see it if was fixed.
As Tracey went off to ponder her choice, the others began freaking out. Shay tried to put things into perspective. She told the group, “No matter what teams we’re on, we’re gonna be fine.” She added that Tracey was in control now but, “She doesn’t have control that I love you guys. She doesn’t have control that I’m gonna work my ass off to beat that yellow line.”
The group reassembled with Ali and the trainers, Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels. Jill was less than thrilled to see that Tracey was running the game again. Tracey’s first call was to pick her own trainer. She chose Bob saying that she felt they had a “connection”. That elicited a very non-enthusiastic “wow” from Bob and the look on his face was hilarious. Jill said in an interview that she thought Tracey was just trying to avoid the ass-whipping that Jill’s been desperate to give her. The teams divided up as follows:
Blue (Bob) - Tracey, Mo, Allen, Liz, Rudy and Rebecca. Black (Jillian) - Daniel, Shay, Abby, Danny, Amanda and Dina.
On the plus side, Tracey kept Shay and Daniel together saying she felt they were meant to be partners. On the negative, Tracey split up Allen & Abby and Liz & Danny. Abby seemed fine with it but Liz was a mess over being separated from Danny. Danny wasn’t happy either saying he felt he’d been stabbed in the back. Amanda was devastated to lose Bob as her trainer and, frankly, so was Bob. He said, “You don’t want to pick favorites. You want to kinda treat them all the same but they’re not. Amanda and I were really connected.” Tracey also separated Amanda from partner Rebecca and broke up Dina & Rudy. The funny part was seeing Tracey act like she was traumatized by it all and then saying in an interview that she just had to stop trying to please everyone else. Uh, Tracey? When has that ever happened?
While many were upset, none was more ticked off than Liz. She said she felt like she’d been backed into a corner and she was going to come out fighting. As for Tracey, Liz was going to “put her ass home in the most evil way possible.” Liz planed to make a show of being Tracey’s best buddy and then she’d get her. I have to say, it all made me really like Liz. The downside to Liz’s rage was that she overdid it in the gym and passed out. She was determined to have immunity at the weigh in so she could complete her plan against Tracey. As she recovered she sat with Bob and Jill and made this plan perfectly clear to them. Neither tried to dissuade her and Jill actually got a kick out of it.
During the same workout session, we got introduced to Dina’s biggest challenge – jumping up on a platform. She even walked out of the gym in frustration over it. Rudy was still there for her and gave her a pep talk about believing in herself. She tried and tried but still couldn’t get it.
Bob took his new team to the grocery store to talk nutrition and in the process provided us with:
Product Placement Alert 1 – Buy the Jennie-O Turkey Breast Roast instead of a rotisserie chicken that has high fat dark meat. They used the turkey breast to make quick lo-cal wraps.
Challenge
The first Blue vs. Black challenge was meant to be a team builder. The group met Ali in the hills surrounding the BL campus. The teams had to carry a platform, with one team member sitting on it, through a course that included a hill, a mud pit and a field. The prize for winning was a video from home. Tracey and Abby still had to sit out the challenges for medical reasons. Blue took an early lead and never lost it. It was a pretty clear victory. After it was over, Rebecca offered to give up her video so that Dina could watch the one from her family. As they hugged, Rebecca whispered to Dina that she should now get on that platform. That made Dina stop and think. While seeing the video meant a lot to her, Dina said she had to get on the platform for herself, not for anyone or anything else. She gave the video back to Rebecca.
There were tears aplenty as the Blue Team watched their videos. Oddly enough, Tracey’s was one of the one’s I enjoyed the most. She and her husband seem like a really great match – and I don’t mean that sarcastically. We also watched as Liz asked Danny to watch her video with her and I think everyone but Danny saw what was coming. When she hit the play button, it was Danny’s video that began. I’m really becoming a big Liz fan!
During the last chance workout, Bob wanted to switch things up for his team so he took them to:
Product Placement Alert 2 – 24 Hour Fitness. He also snuck in a promo for the Bodybugg.
Meanwhile, over at the Black Team workout, Dina was still trying to defeat that platform. She wasn’t getting it but she wasn’t giving up.
Weigh In
Going into the weigh in, Blue was feeling pretty confident because Tracey had stacked them with big guys. This time they would weigh in as a team and the team with the lowest percentage of weight loss would have to send someone home. Whoever had the highest percent of loss on that team would have immunity.
Blue: Tracey lost 7 pounds. How does this keep happening? She’s the one least able to work out and yet she keeps putting up good numbers. Mo lost 6, Allen lost 7 and Rudy lost 8 pounds. He was a bit disappointed because it was the first time he didn’t lose in the double digits. He’s already lost an amazing 73 pounds. Rebecca lost 7 pounds putting her at 237. She said it was the amount she weighed when she was 14. Liz was the last to weigh in for Blue and she lost 8 pounds. She was thrilled. As a team, Blue lost 43 pounds for a total of 2.56%.
Black: To be safe, they needed to lose more than 45 pounds. Abby lost 5 pounds. She was a little disappointed. Dina and Amanda lost 6 pounds each. Danny lost 10 pounds and was very happy. He said this week he was able to go above what his mind said he could do and he was ready to choose his direction rather than have his direction choose him. Daniel lost 11 pounds. That meant Shay needed to lose at least 8 pounds. She lost 16! The Black Team lost 54 pounds for a total of 3.05%.
The Blue Team was going to have to send someone home. It wouldn’t be Liz because she got what she wanted – immunity. It seemed like a foregone conclusion that Tracey would be hitting the road but then ….. Coach Mo announced in a team meeting that he was the one who put up the lowest numbers and should be the one to go. Rudy still wanted to oust Tracey because she brought stress to the team. Allen felt they should keep her because she did bring good numbers to the weigh in. Liz, who was so adamant about getting rid of Tracey, started to question that choice as well.
In the elimination room it was clear what direction they had decided on when Liz began the voting by writing down Mo’s name. Rudy, Tracey and Rebecca followed suit. Mo asked them all to work hard in the gym so that his leaving wouldn’t be for nothing. He’s such a nice and classy man. I really, really, really wish they’d kicked off Tracey instead. I get what the team was thinking but still, I wanted her gone.
In his “Where They Are Now” clip we learned that Mo has lost a total of 76 pounds and he’s looking great. Mo’s life revolves around coaching and motivating kids and he has brought all he’s learned at the ranch to those kids. He really is one of the good ones.
Next Week: The contestants go home for a visit and there may be some subsequent problems at the weigh in.
Full episodes and bonus clips of BL are available at NBC’s website here:
During the recap, host Tom Bergeron pointed out that Melissa had the biggest one week improvement (from 19 to 28) in DWTS history. That was followed by Melissa & Mark getting the encore dance with their Charleston. If anything, Melissa may have been even better this time.
Shakira Musical Performance #1: Shakira performed her new song, “Did It Again” and, wow, this was a vast improvement over her “America’s Got Talent” guest spot. It was a real show and, while I didn’t completely understand the meaning behind the dancing girls who played silent drums, they looked fantastic and were quite entertaining.
The results began with Tom and co-host Samantha Harris announcing – in no particular order – two couples who were safe and one who was in the bottom two:
Mya & Dmitry Chaplin – Safe
Melissa Joan Hart & Mark Ballas – Safe
Aaron Carter & Karina Smirnoff – Bottom Two. They were definitely two people who were trying hard not to show on their faces what they were really thinking – and only partly succeeding.
Six of the pro dancers took the floor to do a demonstration of the Argentine Tango and the Paso Doble. Those will be the featured dances next week. The six were Dmitry, Alec, Louis, Karina, Cheryl Burke and Edyta Sliwinska. They were all lovely, of course.
Tom was back and announced that “in the order known as no particular”, the next three couples safe to dance again were:
Kelly Osbourne & Louis van Amstel
Natalie Coughlin & Alec Mazo
Joanna Krupa & Derek Hough
All the women were safe. After a commercial break we found out that the following couples were also safe:
Mark Dacascos & Lacey Schwimmer
Michael Irvin & Anna Demidova
That was probably the shock of the night. The football fans must have rallied after last week’s appearance by Michael in the bottom two.
Montage: The Kids of DWTS featuring the children of Chuck, Mark, Michael and Melissa. The best part was Michael’s son Elijah who said, “I was thinking, oh boy, my dad’s gonna be on ‘Dancing with the Stars’. He’s gonna make a complete idiot of himself.”
Shakira Musical Performance #2: This time she did “Hips Don’t Lie” and I’m now completely baffled as to what happened on AGT. This was another solid and entertaining performance.
Montage: The Stress of DWTS. Mya probably summed it up best by saying the show was basically “Mardi Gras meets the Olympics”.
The fate of the final three couples was then revealed:
Donny Osmond & Kym Johnson – Safe
Louie Vito & Chelsie Hightower – Safe
Chuck Liddell & Anna Trebunskaya – Bottom Two
Chuck & Anna were the couple leaving. I have to say, Aaron looked really down and didn’t perk up much at finding out he was safe. The kid was upset.
For his part, Chuck seemed fine with the result. He was very gracious and, it has to be noted again, has helped to transform Anna. In previous seasons she has come across as cold and brittle but, with Chuck, she has been warm, sweet and happy. I’ve actually liked her!
Full episodes of DWTS are available at ABC’s website here:
This week saw the introduction of four new dances. I’ll give a thumbs up to the addition of the Charleston and the Lambada but it turns out I’m not a big fan of the Texas Two Step or the Bolero.
Chuck Liddell & Anna Trebunskaya: Chuck was looking forward to the Two Step because there wouldn’t be any ruffles on his costume and lifts would be allowed. He said it would enable him to use his size and strength for something more than getting in the way. It was ….. an interesting dance. The lifts were quite good but the rest looked a bit like a mess. Head judge Len Goodman also liked the lifts, and found Chuck entertaining, but the quality of dance wasn’t there. Bruno Tonioli said Chuck brings carnage and mayhem to everything he does but somehow it did still look like a Two Step. Carrie Ann Inaba thought this style fit Chuck the best. Scores: Carrie Ann – 6, Len – 5, Bruno – 6. Total = 17.
Melissa Joan Hart & Mark Ballas: To help Melissa get in character for the Charleston, Mark took her to a 1920’s club – during the day when no one else was there. I’m not sure how it helped but it definitely did. Melissa was like a completely different girl. Maybe having such a silly character freed her up so she could relax and enjoy the dance. It was her best showing so far. Bruno was very excited and said he felt like he was in the 20’s. Carrie Ann thought this was definitely the dance for Melissa and it was her breakthrough performance. Len said the Charleston was about energy, excitement and entertainment and Melissa hit all three. Scores: Carrie Ann – 9, Len – 9, Bruno – 10. Total: 28. They were ecstatic.
Natalie Coughlin & Alec Mazo: There was some stress between the partners this week. Alec was pushing Natalie to take on challenging choreography and she looked overwhelmed. I thought Natalie looked beautiful, and struck some very impressive poses, but it’s a little hard to judge this dance not knowing what it’s supposed to look like. Carrie Ann was a little torn. She appreciated and encouraged the more challenging choreography but could also see that Natalie was struggling with it. Len very much liked the lyrical quality but would have liked more of a romantic connection between the partners. Bruno said Natalie looked like Sharon Stone in “Basic Instinct” (that was supposed to be a compliment) but she had to watch her swimmer’s arms. Scores: Carrie Ann – 8, Len – 8, Bruno – 8. Total = 24.
Aaron Carter & Karina Smirnoff: Their setup clip began with a really nice interaction between Aaron and Michael Irvin. Aaron was upset about his performance last week and Michael was very supportive and encouraging. It was an awww moment. They wanted to make a splash with the Lambada so Aaron got some gymnastics coaching so he could pull off a big trick at the opening of the dance. The trick went great and I thought it was an enjoyable dance. The judges, however, were really mean. Len, not surprisingly, didn’t like the trick. He thought the time should have been spent developing the rhythm and raunchiness of the dance. Bruno said Aaron needed to be more like Gilles Marini and needed to grow up as he performs. I’m not entirely sure what Bruno meant by that but it came across as insulting. Carrie Ann told Aaron that he had to chill out. She said his going “over the top” was turning people off. She also said she wasn’t trying to hurt his feelings – a big clue that she knew that was exactly what she’d done. Scores: Carrie Ann – 6, Len – 6, Bruno – 6. Total = 18. That was too harsh.
Mark Dacascos & Lacey Schwimmer: Mark & Lacey got the Two Step which was a problem because, in the words of Lacey, Mark isn’t very country. He’s also a bit of a perfectionist and he was trying to let go of some of that so he could relax and enjoy the dance. I’m beginning to think this dance is harder than it looks. Mark certainly did better than Chuck but he also looked awkward. Bruno thought Mark’s confidence was much improved but did note that Mark got off step at one point. Carrie Ann said she liked it and was pleased with the chemistry. Len loved the choreography and appreciated that Mark held up his end of the dance – though he did note that some of the footwork was heavy. Scores: Carrie Ann – 8, Len – 7, Bruno – 7. Total = 22.
Kelly Osbourne & Louis van Amstel: Kelly’s setup clip was quite revealing – which has been typical with Kelly on this show and is a big part of why she’s so endearing. She and Louis were doing the Charleston to “Cabaret” and Kelly revealed that, as odd as it sounds coming from Ozzy Osbourne’s daughter, she loves musicals. At one time she had the lead in “Chicago” on Broadway but lost it because she couldn’t dance. She began this number sitting in the lap of her real-life boyfriend and the whole thing was quite adorable. Carrie Ann said she loves to see the joyous look on Kelly’s face when she gets something right – like she did with this dance. Len said Kelly came out with a lot of confidence and really performed, although he would have liked a bit more “swiveling”. Bruno thought Kelly should be happy because it was a very good performance. Scores: Carrie Ann – 8, Len – 7, Bruno – 8. Total = 23.
Joanna Krupa & Derek Hough: Knowing they were going to do the same dance as Aaron and Mya made this team determined to bring it … and bring it they did. There was a lot of steam and skin – much of it Derek’s. The choreography was very striking. Len said he knew which dance he wanted for the encore. Bruno said it was like watching animals get physical and Carrie Ann followed by saying she hoped the children were in bed. Host Tom Bergeron quipped that he was betting some of the adults were now. Backstage, co-host Samantha Harris noted that this was the first time Derek has danced shirtless and he replied that, with Tony and Maks gone, he had to “represent”. Scores: Carrie Ann – 9, Len – 8, Bruno – 9. Total = 26.
Donny Osmond & Kym Johnson: Kym had to spend considerable time this week getting Donny to calm down and stop over-thinking their Charleston. Donny had himself pretty worked up because the style was such a natural fit for him that he knew it would make expectations high. They were and I think Donny exceeded them. The choreography was great and Donny looked to be effortlessly keeping up with Kym. Bruno said it was a showman in his element. Carrie Ann commented that they move exceptionally well together – which made it easy to see when Donny got off a bit. Len said Donny looked good and danced good. Scores: Carrie Ann – 8, Len – 8, Bruno – 8. Total = 24. I actually think those should have been 9’s.
Michael Irvin & Anna Demidova: Michael was a bit shook up about having been in the bottom two so Anna brought in Tony Dovolani for some additional coaching on the Bolero. He worked on Michael’s character development. Michael did fine with that part but he wasn’t really given much else to do. Mainly he just stood there while Anna danced. Carrie Ann said the romance was clear but there wasn’t enough actual dancing. Len described it as “economic” with the movement but added that Michael would finally get a score better than 4 from him. Bruno echoed that the romance was there but not the steps. Scores: Carrie Ann – 5, Len – 6, Bruno – 5. Total = 16. Those scores were tough but accurate.
Louie Vito & Chelsie Hightower: The Two Step was an alien dance for both Louie & Chelsie so they paid a visit to Ty Murray at his ranch for inspiration. It was so good to have Ty and his unexpected one-liners back. When Louie came out in his full cowboy regalia, Ty described him as a “Mini-Me with long hair.” I really like this pair and, if they couldn’t get me to enjoy the Two Step, then it just wasn’t the dance for me. I think their’s was the best of the bunch but it still didn’t work. Len described it as a series of walks with Chelsie doing something in between. Bruno called it a dazed and confused Two Step that only got by on Louie’s charm. Carrie Ann said she couldn’t see any of the music moving through Louie. Scores: Carrie Ann – 5, Len – 5, Bruno - 6. Total = 16.
Mya & Dmitry Chaplin: Mya exerted herself a bit more this week when it came to the choreography. At first it looked like things might get tense between her and Dmitry but it all seemed to work out quite well. Their dance was hot, hot, hot and Mya was quite the glistening little thing. Bruno called it an erotic, exotic roller-coaster one wants to ride over and over again. He was very Bruno about the whole thing. Carrie Ann described it as “amazing” and sexy while still being classy and sophisticated. Len said his expectations for Mya are always high because she always does well and he expected a bit more from her Lambada. Frankly, I can’t imagine what that could have been – and have it still be something ABC could air. Scores: Carrie Ann – 10, Len – 8, Bruno – 10. Total = 28. Len! Stop it!
We ended with Mya & Dmitry and Melissa & Mark tied for first place and Michael & Anna and Louie & Chelsie tied at the bottom. I’m guessing it will be Michael’s turn to leave this week.
Full episodes of DWTS are available at ABC’s website here:
Posted on October 12th, 2009 by Princess Kitty in Amazing Race
Aired 10-11-09
We picked back up in Ho Chi Minh City with Harlem Globetrotters teammates, Flight Time & Big Easy, departing in 1st place at 6:53PM. The teams had to fly to Phnom Penh, Cambodia. I was reminded that these racers are very young because hardly any of them knew how to pronounce that name. Once there, they had to find the Foreign Correspondent’s Club and ask the assignment editor to give them their next assignment. Dating couple Meghan & Cheyne, father and son Gary & Matt, married couple Brian & Ericka, brothers Sam & Dan and poker players Maria & Tiffany followed between 6:54 and 7:16PM.
At the airport, Flight Time & Big Easy and Meghan & Cheyne found they were going to have a long wait. Only one airline (Vietnam Airlines) flew to Cambodia and the next flight out wasn’t until 12:25PM the next day.
Newly dating couple Mika & Canaan were in 7th place and departed at 7:25PM. They were followed by best friends Zev & Justin at 7:31PM. We learned that these two became friends when they met at camp. Zev, who has Asperger’s Syndrome, said Justin made him a part of his circle of friends and he was very grateful for that. The last pair to leave was engaged couple Lance & Keri at 7:32PM. Lance said they were experiencing the stress of about 5 years of marriage during the race and (accurately) noted that their communication skills “suck”.
Things got a little nerve-wracking at the airport when Lance & Keri and Zev & Justin found that the 12:25PM flight was full. They had to buy tickets for the next flight out at 2:15PM and be placed on standby for the earlier one. After a lot of hand-wringing they did get on the same flight as everyone else. We had a race reboot.
Once in Phnom Penh, Zev & Justin took an early lead. They quickly bonded with their cab driver, Thierry. Actually, all the drivers seemed pretty good in Cambodia and the teams quickly descended on the Foreign Correspondent’s Club. The next clue was a picture of Jackie Kennedy visiting the country in 1967. They were told that they had to locate the hotel that had a suite named for “the woman in the picture.” I was left feeling old again as hardly any of these people recognized her! The suite was at the Hotel Le Royal and, luckily for the teams, the locals knew about the famous picture and the hotel.
Things were going smoothly for everyone except Mika & Canaan. The clue specifically said they had to ask the editor for their next “assignment” but Canaan kept saying “task”. He did finally reread the instructions. The whole segment wasn’t flattering to Canaan as he said the picture was of Queen Elizabeth. Of course, he wasn’t alone in being clueless. Flight & Easy, Sam & Dan and Canaan’s teammate Mika all thought Jackie Kennedy was Cambodian royalty. Only Zev and Gary were shown to know who she was. I’ll cut them a little slack because the picture was small and they were in a hurry but, really, it was a pretty sad display.
Zev & Justin were the first to arrive at the hotel and they found a Detour.
Detour
The choice involved two common accessories worn by the Cambodian people. “Cover” involved locating a helmet stand, getting 4 motorcycle helmets, and then finding a family of 4 to sell them to for $10. They could then exchange the $10 for the next clue. In “Wrap” the teams had to go to the Russian Market and locate a shopkeeper who would give them a unique scarf. They then had to search the market for a woman wearing the identical scarf. All the teams chose “Wrap” except Lance & Keri. Zev & Justin arrived at the market first and had their new friend Thierry help them search. I wonder if TAR airs in Cambodia? Thierry seemed very into the whole thing. They continued to breeze through this leg and were the first to find the matching scarf. The next clue told them to travel, by foot, to Wat Toul Tom Pong. They ran behind the cab as their new best friend lead them to the site.
Flight Time & Big Easy also found some helpers in the form of two girls from Pennsylvania who happened to be shopping at the market and who knew where Wat Toul Tom Pong was.
Zev, Justin & Thierry arrived at the site and found a Roadblock
Roadblock
One team member had to don a monkey mask and tail and learn to perform like a monkey. According to host Phil Keoghan, monkeys are revered in Cambodia and the Royal Family employs “Monkey Masters” to train dancers to imitate the animals. The racers had to complete three specific maneuvers. Zev took the challenge and did pretty well – on the first two tasks. The third maneuver was difficult for him and the noise and pressure caused him to have a panic attack. The delay allowed Dan to finish the task and he and brother Sam took the lead. They were the first to get the final clue taking them to the Pit Stop at Wat Phnom, a 600 year old Buddhist shrine.
Zev finished as Flight Time and Ericka started the monkey business (sorry, I couldn’t resist). Thierry, the amazing cab driver, came through for the buddies again as Zev & Justin beat Sam & Dan to the Pit Stop. They checked in first but we didn’t get an announcement from Phil about the prize they’d won because trouble was looming.
Sam & Dan checked in 2nd.
Flight Time & Big Easy were 3rd.
We then cut to Zev & Justin searching for Zev’s passport. When they couldn’t locate it, they went to confess to Phil. He informed them that, if they didn’t find the passport, they would be out of the race. He sent them back out to look for it saying they had to find it and make it back before the last team arrived. The guys had no idea what happened and they started the search already looking defeated.
Hey, here’s a shocking development: Lance was peppering Keri with unwanted advice at the monkey roadblock and she was yelling at him to shut up.
Thierry came back to help Zev & Justin in their search but he seemed out of miracles.
Brian & Ericka arrived at the Pit Stop and Phil declared them to now be the official team #3.
Gary & Matt were 4th.
Meghan & Cheyne were 5th.
Lance & Keri checked in 6th. As they approached Phil, Lance did this silly karate spin and kick. Lord, I find these two annoying.
Mika & Canaan were 7th.
Maria & Tiffany were the last team to arrive but, since Zev & Justin weren’t back yet, they were still in the race. This was the second time they’ve been last but survived (the first time having been on a non-elimination leg) and that wasn’t lost on them. Tiffany said she wished they had that kind of luck when they play poker.
The guys eventually dragged themselves back to the Pit Stop having not found the passport. Justin was very down. He said that he blamed himself because he can be prone to carelessness and Zev had trusted him. Zev replied that it was just a freak thing. Phil told them they were eliminated. They were so sweet and supportive of each other during their final interview that it just broke my heart that they’re done.
Next Week: We go to Dubai and face the heat and …. snow?
Full episodes and bonus clips of TAR are available at CBS’ website here:
Posted on October 11th, 2009 by Princess Kitty in Television
Let me start by asking:
How dumb are you, NBC?
Apparently dumb enough to renew a series that clearly belongs at 10pm, have six episodes filmed and then cancel it before airing any of those episodes because you’ve come to the realization that it’s too “gritty” to air at 9pm.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, production has been shutdown on the second season of “Southland” because “the show’s content was deemed too dark and gritty for broadcast TV, especially for 9 p.m.” “Dateline” will continue filling the 9PM slot on Friday. NBC’s march towards cheaper and cheaper programming continues.
It will be the first time in 15 years that NBC will not have a John Wells production on its schedule. THR quoted Wells as saying, “I’m disappointed that NBC no longer has the time periods available to support the kind of critically-acclaimed series that was for so many years, a hallmark of their success. We remain extremely proud of ‘Southland’ and are actively looking for another home for the series.” The plan is to shop the show to other networks.
Personally, I think TNT should pick up “Southland” as a way of apologizing for cancelling “Saving Grace”.
Posted on October 10th, 2009 by Princess Kitty in Biggest Loser
Aired 10-06-09
The show opened with a recap of Tracey’s crazy-eyed antics of the previous week. She’s on her way to becoming the biggest “villain” this show has seen since the notorious Vicky of season 6. The recap segued into a meeting between Tracey and her Purple teammate Mo and the Orange Team’s Daniel & Shay. Daniel had asked Tracey to put him on the scale during the last weigh in. He thought Tracey would go along with the request because Tracey had emphatically agreed that Shay needed to stay at the ranch. Instead, Tracey put Shay on the scale. The Orange Team fell below the yellow line with the Red Team and was saved from elimination by the Red Team volunteering to be the ones sent home. Shay felt betrayed. She said she’d spent her life being hurt by those who were supposed to love her and now she’s got strangers claiming to care for her and then letting her down. Coach Mo jumped in to defend his partner saying that people were asking Tracey for favors without promising anything in return. That was true of the Pink Team but Shay pointed out that Tracey hadn’t said she was doing a favor. She said she truly believed Shay should stay. In the end, Shay said she just wanted some honesty from Tracey but Tracey insisted that she’d been honest all along. Nothing was really settled.
Trainers Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels met up with the group the next day to find out how the elimination went. Jill was uncomfortable with the Red Team basically falling on their sword. Part of the journey for these people is to learn to put themselves first. Bob cautioned that they shouldn’t get caught up in debating who does or does not need to be there. They all need it and deserve it.
Later, while beating the living daylights out of Julio, Jillian managed to help him come to a realization. Julio was emphatic that he wasn’t fat because he was unhappy. He’s very happy with his life and family. The problem was that food has always been the thing he’s best at and knows the most about. He realized that food was his drug of choice. Food wasn’t something he could or would give up so he needed to learn to change how he focuses on it.
Tracey met with Dr. Huizenga to find out if she could be medically released to workout with the group. Apparently when Tracey collapsed running a mile on day one, she did some major damage to a muscle. Tests showed she was still having a problem and Dr. H said she couldn’t do any exercise AT ALL. She burst into tears. I know I should have felt bad for her but I was just too over her dramatics by that point.
Pop Challenge
The group met with host Alison Sweeney in the kitchen for a big and scary surprise. The refrigerators and cupboards were chained up. Ali told them that for the next 7 days they’d have no access to the kitchen. Everything they ate would have to be ordered in. They were going to have to study the menus and figure out the healthiest options. To begin the learning process, Ali gave them a Pop Challenge.
Ali showed the group three options for a meal and they had to pick the healthiest one. The winning team would get a kitchen stocked with healthy food for a year. The choices were:
A: 1/4 roasted chicken breast (without skin), 1/2 cup low fat creamed spinach, 2.75oz. of sweet potatoes, 1/2 cup nonfat peach frozen yogurt and 2 cups of unsweetened iced tea.
B: 1/2 rotisserie chicken (with skin), 1/2 cup creamed spinach, 1/2 cup vanilla frozen yogurt with 1/2 cup blueberries and 2 cups of green tea.
C: 1/4 barbecue chicken breast (with skin), 1 cup peas and carrots, 1 cup mango slices and 1 cup skim milk.
I thought this one was pretty easy – A. The contestants had to ask for details about the food and it was the creamed spinach in A that threw several teams off. They never asked about the fat content. No team chose B. The Orange, Pink and Brown teams correctly chose A. They had a tie-breaker question – how many calories were in meal A? Whoever was closest, without going over, would win. Brown guessed 547, Pink 385 and Orange 475. The correct amount was 445. Pink won the food. Ali ended the segment by presenting the contestants with:
Product Placement Alert 1: “The Biggest Loser Simple Swaps” book.
The food ordering got off to a rough start as they all turned into those picky customers that food servers dread. Plus, their orders were wrong in many cases. I’m sure that was done deliberately by the show. It went a long way towards convincing the group that they wanted to continue preparing their own food when they got home. As they explained all the travails to Bob & Jillian we got:
Product Placement Alert 2: Blue Team Rudy was clearly displaying a pack of Extra Sugar-Free Fruit Sensations gum.
Bob & Jill decided to take the group out to eat at a Mexican restaurant to help educate them. The main lessons learned were to:
-Refuse the chips and salsa (or breadbasket).
-Drink water, club soda or unsweetened iced tea.
-Go for foods that are grilled, steamed, broiled or roasted.
-Have sauces and dressings served on the side.
-Bring a calorie count guidebook with you – something our group of contestants got busted for not doing.
There was also a little meltdown moment from Rebecca when Jill pushed her about not having a clear reason for losing the weight. Jillian said Rebecca needed to have a clear purpose behind her reasons for changing or else it would just all feel like torture.
Challenge
The group met up again with Alison for this week’s challenge. A huge platform was suspended over a pool. The contestants had to hold on to a handlebar as the platform rotated from horizontal to vertical. Whoever stayed up the longest would win immunity at the weigh in for their team. I actually had some concerns about this one. I could picture someone staying up there long enough to pull their shoulders out of the socket. Abby and Tracey were not allowed to participate for medical reasons. Liz was probably wishing she had a physical problem at that point because she was terrified of heights. She was the first to let go and drop in the water and was quickly followed by her Brown teammate Danny. Amanda, Rudy, Rebecca, Dina and Coach Mo followed. Shay finally dropped after 10 minutes and was quite proud that, as the heaviest one, she lasted longer than all the other women and several of the men. Only Julio, Allen and Daniel remained. Julio was the next to drop. Daniel eventually won saying he just kept chanting the word “immunity” to himself. Last season Daniel left in week four and he was determined to go further this time around.
During the last chance workout, Coach Mo hurt his lower back. Bob knew he was in real pain but also thought Mo was making it worse by panicking. Bob told him to rest for an hour before getting too down about his future at the ranch. The poor guy dragged himself back to one of the bikes and continued his workout.
Weigh In
There was a lot of apprehension going in to the weigh in because of the food situation. Blue Team Dina commented that she probably went under her daily calorie allotment because she was unsure of how the ordered food was prepared. Consequently, she also had much less stamina in her workouts.
The Orange Team had immunity so they went first. Shay lost 5 pounds but Daniel lost zero. It was pretty clear what was going on – gameplay – but Daniel denied it saying it came from eating out all week. Even sweet Alison wasn’t buying it saying, “Daniel, you know better than that.” Jillian followed up saying, “I would hope it’s strategy because you’d be stupid if it wasn’t.”
Green: Allen lost 7 pounds and Abby lost 3 for a total of 1.97%.
Blue: Rudy lost 11 pounds and Dina lost 5 for a total of 2.57%. Jillian said Rudy was one of those big ole’ boys, who used to be a football player, and weight just melts off of him.
Brown: Liz lost 3 pounds and Danny lost 8 for a total of 1.74%.
Purple: Tracey lost 4 pounds and Mo lost 8 for a total of 2.21%. Sigh. Karma took another week off. Tracey wasn’t expected to lose anything and she lost more than Abby and Liz! Shay said in an interview that it killed her that Purple was safe and a healthy team, that could workout, was going home.
Black: Julio lost 4 pounds for a total of 1.09%. He was definitely below the yellow line. Jill was perplexed. She said something wasn’t right and, if Julio made it through to next week, their mission would be to figure it out.
Pink: Amanda lost 5 pounds and Rebecca lost 4 for a total of 1.86%. It was the first time Amanda lost more than Rebecca and they were both thrilled.
The Brown Team fell below the yellow line with Julio. Back at the house, the gloomy group gathered. Liz said that the Brown and Black Teams were very close and she wasn’t going to fight against Julio. For his part, Julio said it was a nightmare because he loved Liz & Danny. He didn’t want to go home but he wasn’t going to say he deserved to stay more than Brown. They basically told the others that they would just have to do what they thought was best.
Purple was particularly torn because Julio was Mo’s best friend at the ranch and Liz was Tracey’s roommate. Orange and Pink were also struggling to decide if they should play the game or do what their heart was telling them.
In the elimination room, Orange voted to eliminate Julio because they believed he was best able to continue at home. Blue said it was a nightmare choice but they voted for Brown. Allen of the Green Team said they used logic to vote for Julio because it was better to help two people stay than one. The flaw in the logic was that doing so meant he had to vote out one of his best friends. As for Purple, Coach Mo was the one who gave in and they cast the final vote eliminating Julio. Julio said he had a lot of people at home who loved him and wouldn’t let him quit.
In his “Where They Are Now” clip, we found a slimmed down Julio who looks forward to his time at the gym. He’s lost 108 pounds. His passion is still food but now it’s directed towards healthy food.
Next Week: It’s going to be Blue vs. Black on campus which means Bob vs. Jillian. The power to make the new teams is up for grabs and everyone is terrified that power will go to Tracey.
Bonus scenes and full episodes are available at NBC’s website here:
The downside to Liz’s rage was that she overdid it in the gym and passed out. She was determined to have immunity at the weigh in so she could complete her plan against Tracey. As she recovered she sat with Bob and Jill and made this plan perfectly clear to them. Neither tried to dissuade her and Jill actually got a kick out of it.
