WARNING: Spoiler Alert! Do not read on unless you've seen "Amazing Race Canada" Season 2, Episode 6. Unless you like spoilers, then go right ahead!
"We always entertained the notion that somewhere in the race we would be eliminated," said Bob.
"But we thought we would know it."
Take a bow, Rex and Bob. The pair hams it up until the end of their race, even as they were tripped up by each task along the way.
Matching coins to their flags at the Royal Canadian Mint? The duo didn't immediately have it in the bank. Preparing 74 perogies for a stringent potato maiden while in a church basement? Not as easy as pie. And -- finally -- lip-synching to a made-up rock anthem in front of "Winnipeg music lovers" at a bar, aptly dubbed "Whiskey Dix"? Let's say Rex's performance started off a little limp.
When in Winnipeg, indeed.
It's a shame the wisecracking couple were eliminated in the city described by host Jon Montgomery as being "smack-dab in the middle of our great country." The fan favourites ran into trouble on the race before, taking two time penalties in Tofino, B.C. under allegedly controversial terms, but they always managed to rally back from their so-so task finishes with finesse. However, this time, they weren't as lucky, but the National Ballet of Canada artist in residence — who was recognized by a fan in Hong Kong — did perform a fancy ballet move at his final curtain call with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet prima ballerina. How sweet.
It was a fitting farewell to the longtime couple, and the episode was equally as impressive. Finally, on Episode 6, we see some of the domestic lightning in a bottle that made "The Amazing Race Canada" a nationwide phenomenon in Season 1. Kinetic, exciting, and often frantic, the teams all fly from Whitehorse to Winnipeg with a quick connection in Vancouver, and seem neck-and-neck all episode long.
With clever challenges and even smarter gameplay, the duos travelled to the Royal Canadian Mint where they were tasked with pairing up a nation's flag with its currency. Why not? Flag tasks are typically frustrating, and slow down the racers. Back in the Season 9 finale of "The Amazing Race," the teams had to sift through 285 flags to find the ones that corresponded with each of the countries they visited on the race, in order, while surrounded by decoys. We saw that again this time as Alain and Audrey confused the Philippines for Costa Rica, and Ryan and Rob continued to lag behind. Meanwhile, Sukhi and Jinder, who arrived last at the task, finished near the top due to Sukhi's Rainman-esque knowledge of world travel. Who knew?
Leaving in first and now somewhat clouded by hubris, Olympians Natalie and Meaghan are stalled behind a giant train, but still arrive at the Detour before the others.
Given the option of taking the Detour (Puck it [hockey] vs. Pinch it [perogie making]), or the suspiciously easy Fast Forward (finding "vintage" signs in Winnipeg) — which would keep them in the lead — the two chose to show off their hockey skills. After all, they're gold medallists, and Meaghan has two of those coveted trophies.
"This is our challenge!" said Natalie.
Except, instead of scoring a shorthanded goal when they needed it, the hockey players nabbed a short-sighted mishap. It took them 57 tries to net five goals, an embarrassment amplified by Pierre and Michel and Sukhi and Jinder schooling them on the ice, despite the fact that it was Sukhi's first time in skates. Amazing.
"It's just the most epic thing ever to see gold medal Olympians keep missing," said Jinder.
It was epic, but Natalie and Meaghan's arrogance on the rink was only beaten out by Alain and Audrey's game-savvy. Arriving at the MTS Centre in third, the Montreal couple intended to avoid the Fast Forward because they thought it was a no-brainer that either the hockey players or brother-sister duo would go for it. Except, they quickly found out they were wrong. Audrey ran into the women's dressing room, but when she saw Natalie, Meaghan, and Sukhi's bags in there, she knew the Fast Forward was still up for the taking. She then barged into the men's dressing room to inform Alain.
"Nobody's at the Fast Forward!"
The couple, who lovingly bicker in French, quickly find seven faded billboards and fill out their questionnaire, before travelling to the Pit Stop, in hopes of finishing in first for the second leg in a row.
Meanwhile, back at the church basement, Rex and Bob and Ryan and Rob are making small talk, and hopefully, successful perogies. 74, to be exact.
"Just hanging with the gals, having a little chit-chat," said Rex.
Tedious and time-consuming, it's a perfect red herring detour that sounds simpler than it is, and relies on an expert judge. Remember when Laura and Jackie were eliminated in Hong Kong after wasting too much time on a similar food preparation task? As nice as it is to kibbitz with the other teams, or play around with ingredients, the perogie precision and obsessive attention to detail quickly put these two duos in a race for last place.
Once the teams finished the Detour, they were off to the Road Block at saloon-style rock bar, "Whiskey Dix."
"Who has performance issues?" asked the clue.
Cheeky. Jon introduced the rock star task in a leather jacket and cuff, but never mounted the stage himself. It was fun to see the racers memorize lyrics and get all dolled up like Dee Snider, but Michel wasn't having any of it.
"I said no way I am going to make it, it is way too hard," said Michel.
The twins used their Express Pass and raced to the Pit Stop, fearing their English would cause them to lose their footing in the competition. Finishing in first at the soon-to-be-open Canadian Museum for Human Rights, the brothers were gifted with a prize pack that included an all-inclusive trip to Los Cabos, Mexico.
Next up -- the teams head to France, and visit a Canadian war memorial in Normandy. Will Natalie and Meaghan remember their humble Canadian roots? Will Ryan and Rob show some personality separate from their competitive goals? Will Mickey and Pete wear more custom t-shirts? We'll just have to wait and see, but for the first time, the race looks like it's anyone's game.
Episode 5 Recap
Episode 4 Recap
Episode 3 Recap
Episode 2 Recap
Episode 1 Recap
Episode 1 Review
"Amazing Race Canada" Season 2 airs on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on CTV.
"We always entertained the notion that somewhere in the race we would be eliminated," said Bob.
"But we thought we would know it."
Take a bow, Rex and Bob. The pair hams it up until the end of their race, even as they were tripped up by each task along the way.
Matching coins to their flags at the Royal Canadian Mint? The duo didn't immediately have it in the bank. Preparing 74 perogies for a stringent potato maiden while in a church basement? Not as easy as pie. And -- finally -- lip-synching to a made-up rock anthem in front of "Winnipeg music lovers" at a bar, aptly dubbed "Whiskey Dix"? Let's say Rex's performance started off a little limp.
When in Winnipeg, indeed.
It's a shame the wisecracking couple were eliminated in the city described by host Jon Montgomery as being "smack-dab in the middle of our great country." The fan favourites ran into trouble on the race before, taking two time penalties in Tofino, B.C. under allegedly controversial terms, but they always managed to rally back from their so-so task finishes with finesse. However, this time, they weren't as lucky, but the National Ballet of Canada artist in residence — who was recognized by a fan in Hong Kong — did perform a fancy ballet move at his final curtain call with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet prima ballerina. How sweet.
It was a fitting farewell to the longtime couple, and the episode was equally as impressive. Finally, on Episode 6, we see some of the domestic lightning in a bottle that made "The Amazing Race Canada" a nationwide phenomenon in Season 1. Kinetic, exciting, and often frantic, the teams all fly from Whitehorse to Winnipeg with a quick connection in Vancouver, and seem neck-and-neck all episode long.
With clever challenges and even smarter gameplay, the duos travelled to the Royal Canadian Mint where they were tasked with pairing up a nation's flag with its currency. Why not? Flag tasks are typically frustrating, and slow down the racers. Back in the Season 9 finale of "The Amazing Race," the teams had to sift through 285 flags to find the ones that corresponded with each of the countries they visited on the race, in order, while surrounded by decoys. We saw that again this time as Alain and Audrey confused the Philippines for Costa Rica, and Ryan and Rob continued to lag behind. Meanwhile, Sukhi and Jinder, who arrived last at the task, finished near the top due to Sukhi's Rainman-esque knowledge of world travel. Who knew?
Leaving in first and now somewhat clouded by hubris, Olympians Natalie and Meaghan are stalled behind a giant train, but still arrive at the Detour before the others.
Given the option of taking the Detour (Puck it [hockey] vs. Pinch it [perogie making]), or the suspiciously easy Fast Forward (finding "vintage" signs in Winnipeg) — which would keep them in the lead — the two chose to show off their hockey skills. After all, they're gold medallists, and Meaghan has two of those coveted trophies.
"This is our challenge!" said Natalie.
Except, instead of scoring a shorthanded goal when they needed it, the hockey players nabbed a short-sighted mishap. It took them 57 tries to net five goals, an embarrassment amplified by Pierre and Michel and Sukhi and Jinder schooling them on the ice, despite the fact that it was Sukhi's first time in skates. Amazing.
"It's just the most epic thing ever to see gold medal Olympians keep missing," said Jinder.
It was epic, but Natalie and Meaghan's arrogance on the rink was only beaten out by Alain and Audrey's game-savvy. Arriving at the MTS Centre in third, the Montreal couple intended to avoid the Fast Forward because they thought it was a no-brainer that either the hockey players or brother-sister duo would go for it. Except, they quickly found out they were wrong. Audrey ran into the women's dressing room, but when she saw Natalie, Meaghan, and Sukhi's bags in there, she knew the Fast Forward was still up for the taking. She then barged into the men's dressing room to inform Alain.
"Nobody's at the Fast Forward!"
The couple, who lovingly bicker in French, quickly find seven faded billboards and fill out their questionnaire, before travelling to the Pit Stop, in hopes of finishing in first for the second leg in a row.
Meanwhile, back at the church basement, Rex and Bob and Ryan and Rob are making small talk, and hopefully, successful perogies. 74, to be exact.
"Just hanging with the gals, having a little chit-chat," said Rex.
Tedious and time-consuming, it's a perfect red herring detour that sounds simpler than it is, and relies on an expert judge. Remember when Laura and Jackie were eliminated in Hong Kong after wasting too much time on a similar food preparation task? As nice as it is to kibbitz with the other teams, or play around with ingredients, the perogie precision and obsessive attention to detail quickly put these two duos in a race for last place.
Once the teams finished the Detour, they were off to the Road Block at saloon-style rock bar, "Whiskey Dix."
"Who has performance issues?" asked the clue.
Cheeky. Jon introduced the rock star task in a leather jacket and cuff, but never mounted the stage himself. It was fun to see the racers memorize lyrics and get all dolled up like Dee Snider, but Michel wasn't having any of it.
"I said no way I am going to make it, it is way too hard," said Michel.
The twins used their Express Pass and raced to the Pit Stop, fearing their English would cause them to lose their footing in the competition. Finishing in first at the soon-to-be-open Canadian Museum for Human Rights, the brothers were gifted with a prize pack that included an all-inclusive trip to Los Cabos, Mexico.
Next up -- the teams head to France, and visit a Canadian war memorial in Normandy. Will Natalie and Meaghan remember their humble Canadian roots? Will Ryan and Rob show some personality separate from their competitive goals? Will Mickey and Pete wear more custom t-shirts? We'll just have to wait and see, but for the first time, the race looks like it's anyone's game.
Episode 5 Recap
Episode 4 Recap
Episode 3 Recap
Episode 2 Recap
Episode 1 Recap
Episode 1 Review
"Amazing Race Canada" Season 2 airs on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on CTV.