Episode Report Card Miss Alli: B | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Birdcages, Flowers, And John McCain
By Miss Alli | Season 10 | Episode 3 | Aired on 09.30.2006
The AYL assists Phil in showing all the teams winging their way to Hanoi via Beijing. And then, we are in Vietnam, with fans and bikes and rivers. The flight lands at 10:58 PM, so they're running about two hours late at this point. Dustin and Kandice are the first to get into a taxi and head to the prison. They note that the ride will cost at least $10, and they're thinking it's going to suck for Duke and Lauren and their $11 much more than it sucks for Dustin and Kandice's own $24. It's been a long time since money management was a big factor, and it's interesting that it's been introduced at the same time the casting got less gimmicky and the tasks got a little more task-like and a little less haystack/needle. There is some returning to form going on here, and it's very encouraging. I have a horrible fear of being one of those people who keeps going back for the next album from some washed-up band thinking it's going to be good again, but I'm genuinely optimistic that they've found their feet again.
The Pointies are next, then the A(AM!)s. Peter and Sarah are a bit impeded by her bad leg, which is forcing her to sort of skip along. She reminds him that she can't go all that fast at this point, which you'd think he might be able to remember. This is about the time when it occurs to me that the best thing that could happen on the race would be Peter breaking his arm. How fucking brilliant would that be? In fact, if I had a time machine, I would use it to send one of my burly friends back in time to break Peter's arm. Then I would suggest something constructive, like, "Hey, why don't you wave your cast around and try to get strangers to give you a nickel?" Duke and Lauren, meanwhile, have themselves a Fern, whom Duke met on the plane, and who's supposed to ride along with them and help them get to the prison. Unfortunately, her first act as their Fern is to tell them to wait for her, and then she disappears. That is so against the charter. They're totally going to take her Ferning credentials. Banned! Lauren protests to her dad that they don't have time to wait around, but he thinks it will be really important to have someone with them who knows the language. The *wins get into a van, and Lauren frets at being passed by them. Lyn and Karlyn have a van as well, and they try to make room in it for Mary and Dave (whom they still affectionately call "Kentucky"), but the van turns out to be unable to accommodate everyone, so they just have to go without Mary and Dave. "Dave and Mary are just sweet people," Lyn says. She attributes their bond to "what most southern folks do." Many northern folks as well, there, Lyn. Ever been to the Minnesota State Fair? I didn't think so. Come for the family fun; stay for the mini-donuts. Dave and Mary do get a cab and get going. "We like fast," Dave informs their driver.