The Afghanimals are coming off their first leg win, leaving Sri Lanka and told to fly to the Eternal City and find Hadrian's Bridge for the seventh leg. Of course, the clue isn't specific but with the mention of Hadrian's Bridge, I probably would have gotten Rome. And there's also this thing called the Internet, so teams should have no problem. The Afghanimals don't know but good on the Cowboys for their knowledge of history. J & J are next to go and there's a bit of background on them. Could be a sign of elimination. As they say in this bit, they have redeemed themselves, playing a solid game without any cockiness or drama. Although, without that cockiness, I've become pretty indifferent to them, don't care whether they stay in or not. In short, they are bland.
Still, the teams figures all roads lead to Rome and everyone's on the same flight. Although on landing, the shuttle leaves the tarmac without the Globetrotters, the Mormons and the Cowboys because they got seats at the back of the plane. Always best to get up front when you book. Or if that's not possible to switch with someone else up front. So those three teams are 10 minutes behind.
Taxis race to the bridge. J & J get the clue first. A detour: Gladiator or Charioteer. In Gladiator, teams must fight a seasoned gladiator. In Charioteer, teams must race an RC chariot five laps, one on the turns, the other the speed. Could go either way on this one, although Gladiator might be more fun. J & J take Gladiator, Big Brother and the Afghanimals take Chariot. The Country Singers have their Speed Bump. Go to the Pantheon, take an old typewriter and find the building it looks like, The Altare della Patria. Then they can do the Detour.
Regardless of the task, teams must dress up. J & J practice a sequence and John seems natural. Meanwhile, the trailing teams get the clue and head to their Detours. Big Brother start their race but pretty slow. They blow the first one, but over all it seems easier than Gladiators. The Country Singers pick a typewriter and look for the building. J & J start their fight but John makes a mistake, using his shield rather than the sword. Back to the racing and Chariots are crashing everywhere. Makes me want to watch Ben Hur. Great chariot racing in that movie.
Jessica does pretty good on the fighting, dying when she's supposed to, but John blows it again with his shield. The racing teams also crash so the Afghanimals change tasks as more teams arrive. Crash, bang, tough task, especially when other teams (Big Brother) "accidentally" crash into Dave and Conner just as the Mormons are close to finishing. Boo. Hiss. Then there are four teams racing. and Big Brother is getting frustrated arguing whether to switch or not. They stay. Meanwhile the Country Singers finish their task and decide to join the races. While the only Gladiators (so far) die on the sand, get the thumbs up and their clue. They have to make their way to the Piazza Di John Keats (he's a poet) which is actually the Piazza Di Spagna for the next clue.
But when J & J get into their cab, their driver insists it's a street not a Piazza. They go along with but should have stood their ground. Always go with what the clue says, not the cabbie. So maybe they're in for some trouble. More crashes at the race and the Afghanimals arrive at Gladiator but Big Brother get done and their cab knows where to go. Country Girls come to race, Mormons and Cowboys are done. The Afghanimals fight but Jamal blows it. They get a kick in the ass back to training. The Globetrotters are done racing.
And other teams get cabbies that insist on John Keats Street not Piazza. Meanwhile, the Country Singers think they are eliminated already, even though there's the Roadblock to be done. Never say die in TAR, you never know what might happen. Probably not a Keats poem but there you go. Even so, they get done (no surprise there) and J & J are in the wrong location. Nasty bit of a clue there, no doubt the producers knew this would happen. But Big Brother get to the right spot for the Roadblock: Who Can Sum up the Spanish Steps. Yes my friend, it's the classic TAR counting task. But this time they have to climb the steps and then add that number to the Roman Numerals on the Obelisk at the top. And then write the answer in Roman Numerals. Cool if you know Roman Numerals (I do and I'm guessing Gord does as well). Tough if you don't.
Good on Brendan, the physicist to do it. He starts at the Obelisk, which doesn't bode well. The Afghanimals mess up on the fighting for a couple more rounds. But hey have a lot of fun though and get it done. Brendon on the other hand, not so much. He can't see the obvious date on the obelisk and doesn't seem to know Roman Numerals. At least he gets an inservice from some dude. And the Country Singers get help from the internet to find the John Keats Plaza. While J & J leave their cab and seem completely lost. See, Country Singers, never give up.
The Mormons arrive at the correct locale and ask Rachel where the clue box. She doesn't help. Finally, that's the way to play the game. And no need to Connor to get snippy. Find your own damn clue, buddy. And good on Rachel to ask if he needs someone to hold his hand. Dave starts counting the steps while Brendan is making his way down. He counts the step, noting that the first one is a sewer and gets further help from the dude who helped him before. Lucky to find that guy cause he gets it right. Next clue is to make their way, on foot, to the place where the leg of the race ends and the Via Flamingo begins. Another cryptic clue. They have to find Piazza Del Popolo. And note, the word "pitstop" wasn't used. Sounds like an extra leg to me. Oh, but wait. Phil uses that word. So never mind.
They start running while various other teams arrive at Keats Street and not the plaza. But over time, they get information and all head in the proper direction. Meanwhile, Big Brother arrive first and win trip to Australia. Thank that dude at the Obelisk. Dave struggles with Roman Numerals as the Country Singers start climbing and counting. And not surprisingly, the girls ask the Mormons to help them. And they both move on. The Cowboys arrive not much longer although I'm not sure if any of these teams say them.
The Globetrotters arrive at the steps as the Cowboys get help on the counting and come in fourth. . Flight Time doesn't read the clue and thinks he only has to figure how many steps there are. He doesn't even try Roman Numerals. There's a reason why those guys are consistently near the back. All the remaining teams arrive. But Jamal sort of tells Flight Time what's up. John also doesn't read the clue, only considering the steps. Jamal gets the answer right. But instead of just running away, they decided both the remaining teams. Although they have a codicil to their help, don't pass us and don't U-Turn. At first, I thought this was a bad move but it's not one. This way they look helpful but with their headstart, they'll get to the mat first. And there's a promise of no U-Turning. Although for a million bucks, I would have thanked the boys for their help, given them some vague, yet unbinding promise and then U-turned them if I had to.
Flight Time gets done while John has to go back to get a postcard. Leo and Jamal arrive at the mat and the final two teams race, hoping the Country Singers are behind them. But the physicality of the Globetrotters come into play and they come in sixth. J & J are last. And eliminated. So that background trope was used again, the storyline where we get a little bit of info on the eliminated team early in the episode. But no biggie. As I said, I was pretty indifferent to these guys.
So next week, the Express Pass has to be used and a Double U-turn is in play. Cowboys predict people are starting to play dirty. Should have been doing that before. Everyone's been too nice so far. Look for our vi.