Recap: The Amazing Race Philippines 2, Episode 3 (Leg 1, Day 3) – "When it rains, it pours. Ang malas naman natin."

The leading teams open the next clue pointing them to the Philippine Stock Exchange where they will be given a set of numbers that they will need to decode using the trading board. The message: FIND GREEN COAT AT FOUNTAIN.

Jet & Yna, AJ & Jody, Vince & Ed and Luz & Chen decide to work together to figure it out. Vince takes the lead and feels the others are looking up to him intellectually.

Meanwhile, the other teams are hopping into taxis from Imperial Ice Bar. RR comments on how “engot” Daniel & Charlie are for telling Matt & Phoebe the answer after she told them not to. Ayan tuloy, Matt & Phoebe actually leave the bar before the guys.

Back at the PSE, Vince finally figures out the formula: Each set of numbers has three. The first number is the column of the trading board and the second number is the row. The final number is which letter of the ticker symbol they need.

Vince & Ed tell the other three teams the formula and they hurry outside to find a woman in a green coat who hands them the next clue pointing them to University of Makati Stadium.

Jet & Yna are out 2nd as Zarah & Osang arrive. Before leaving, Jody tells Zarah & Osang how to figure out the code. AJ & Jody leave 3rd, Chen & Luz are 4th and Zarah & Osang are 5th.

The next group of teams arrive: RR & Jeck, Kelvin & JP, Matt & Phoebe, Daniel & Charlie and Roch & Eji. They are all clueless.

Meanwhile, Tina & Avy leave Imperial just as a heavy downpour begins, adding to their already bad day after getting ganged up on. Still, they hope they can catch up, which they do at the PSE.

The other teams start coming up to them to ask if they’ve figured out the clue yet. Tina & Avy just pretend to know what they’re doing, if only to intimidate the others and show them that they don’t need their help.

The first two teams arrive at University of Makati Stadium. Here, teams will duel as they race in a 100 meter sprint, winner gets the next clue.

Vince & Ed and Jet & Yna face-off with the Nerds finishing first as Yna falls behind. They get the next clue revealing the Detour.

Jet & Yna now have to wait for the next team.

Back at the PSE, Phoebe and Charlie are able to break the code. Phoebe makes a point not to help anyone else, but Kelvin & JP get Matt to explain just the formula. Before Phoebe & Matt can leave, Jeck wraps her arms around them and begs for the answer, which Phoebe & Matt easily divulge.

Kelvin & JP are surprised when suddenly Daniel & Charlie and RR & Jeck run out. Tina & Avy are on their way as well.

Feeling sorry for Roch & Eji, who would be the last team left, Kelvin & JP decide to tell them the full answer before running out.

Back at the stadium, Jet & Yna ask AJ & Jody to go easy on them since Yna “doesn’t run at all.” But when Coach Rio Dela Cruz fires the pistol, Jody sprints WAY ahead with dad AJ able to catch up before Jet & Yna.

The siblings wait for Chen & Luz and ask to let them win this duel. Better one of the guys in last get eliminated than them. Jet & Yna propose that they win this duel then wait for Chen & Luz to win their duel before leaving for the next Route marker. With Zarah & Osang watching, Chen & Luz agree to the deal.

Zarah & Osang are now sad and discouraged. They think about the next teams they would have to face and realize they may not be able to beat any of them.

They ask Matt & Phoebe to let them win this duel, but Phoebe says only if Charlie & Daniel arrive next. They end up racing anyway and all Matt & Phoebe can give Zarah & Osang are hugs.

Zarah & Osang talk to Kelvin & JP. Kelvin explains, “Ang hirap kasi, maguuna tayo, tapos yung last, sila ang ma-aano.” He says it’s unfair that they, who arrived first move on while the teams in last… stay in last. Kelvin adds that it is also unfair that they are discussing this only between themselves and not with the other teams.

Kelvin & JP sprint away from Zarah & Osang and give them hugs before leaving. Roch & Eji are happy to be facing Zarah & Osang and it’s the closest race yet. Daniel & Charlie say they feel sorry for the girls, but meh, they just get a hug.

Tina & Avy are next and are excited about being able to move back up and past RR & Jeck who arrive at the stadium last. RR & Jeck pray to God to give them enough strength and they feel sorry for Zarah & Osang because they know the Travel Buddies wouldn’t be able to handle the running. (Even though they actually did just get through seven 100 meter sprints.)

For being the last team, Zarah & Osang need to jog one lap around the entire oval, but accompanied by Coach Rio and Coach Ani De Leon-Brown.

Episode Thoughts

Am I watching The Amazing Race or am I watching Survivor or Big Brother? And I mean Big Brother US of course, why the hell would anyone want to watch Pinoy Big Brother.

But seriously. Are these teams going to be able to do anything for themselves this season? Is this how it’s gonna be the entire Race? So far, out of four tasks, three were completed by making deals or handing out answers. The one task that didn’t involve either was one that couldn’t involve either as it was an individual task.

It wouldn’t be a problem if it were a once in a while kind of thing, but it took up two out of the three first episodes. I’ve honestly never seen such a thing on all my 14 years of watching The Amazing Race (I know TAR25’s Shelley & Nici and Dennis & Isabelle can back me up on this one.) Even with the Yield, U-Turn and two Express Passes forcing teams to play nicey-nice with others for fear of ruffling any feathers (and actual competition), I’ve never seen TARUS teams be so, I don’t know… lazy? They’re certainly doing Dave & Connor and Caroline & Jen proud.

Like the ice bar puzzle, the Stock Exchange puzzle is another task that looks great on paper. But when it plays out like it did, it’s almost nakaka-walang gana. Though it definitely wasn’t as bad as yesterday.

And then the Duel. First of all, is this supposed to be TARPh’s version of HaMerotz LaMillion‘s Double Battles? And were TAR Israel’s battles always this unfair?

Because come on now, while Zarah & Osang are AMAZING for having sprinted so many times, I have also never seen a task so grossly unfair since TAR5’s ascender Road Block, ironically enough, in the Philippines. That’s the task that cost Linda & Karen a rightful spot in the Final 3 and one of the reasons a Road Block limit was in place until TAR modified the rule to favor Dave & Connor in TAR24. [/headcanon… butstilltruth] I don’t even want to say unfair, per se, but it certainly favors one team over another. The difference between this and other normal Detours or Road Blocks that may favor either physical or mental strength is that those tasks depend solely on the teams themselves. These Duels are pitting teams against each other, head-to-head with the intention of, what exactly?

Sure there’s still 3 days worth of tasks I guess. And there have certainly been physical challenges in the past. But when part of this Duel thingamajig, it’s just cruel.

I haven’t seen any TAR Israel episodes with Double Battles to really get a feel for how they work. But if they are anything like this, then I don’t like it. What’s the point other than forcing a team into last place? That’s no different than TARUS wanting to separate teams onto two, separate provided flights just so there’s a leading group and a “group to choose the eliminated team from” instead of having teams just compete and fight it out. The best seasons of TAR (anything pre-TAR12) fostered competition and teams winning and losing based on their own decisions and not because other teams have power to push another team down.

My biggest issue with the teams at the duel was they all didn’t want to help Zarah & Osang, yet most of them actually only even reached that Route Marker BECAUSE of getting help from other teams. So them acting all “Oh no, it’s not fair to the other teams if we let you go before us” is hypocritical considering they had just begged for answers or looked over other teams’ shoulders just to get through TWO tasks.

My Subjective Team Rankings

Zarah & Osang are definitely amazing for actually having run so many times and not give up. If it were other teams, judging from how they’ve Raced so far, they probably would’ve just quit and taken penalties.

Good on Tina & Avy for being able to stay focused and get themselves ahead of Jeck & RR. Though I am so annoyed that we didn’t get a Blondies vs Sexy Besties duel with Tina & Avy winning to add to their new rivalry. I hope Zarah & Osang can also recover the way Tina & Avy did. But also LOLOL at the other teams actually coming to THEM for help after what they did to them at the bar? Wow.

AJ & Jody are alright so far. They haven’t been completely helpless at least. Definitely surprised Luz & Chen agreed to Jet & Yna’s deal considering they talked about regretting giving out answers. Jet & Yna asking teams to let them win is not a bad strategy per se. But giving up after only two runs though? It’s only a hundred meters. Zarah & Osang ran seven of ’em before they ran a whole lap. Roch & Eji slipped into the invisible role this episode.

It’s funny how Vince & Ed mention how much they love puzzles in this episode, yet they couldn’t figure out the puzzle at the Ice Bar. Matt & Phoebe say they don’t want to help, yet hand teams answers on a silver platter the next second after.

Kelvin & JP‘s rationale for not letting Zarah & Osang beat them in the sprint made absolutely no sense whatsoever and actually made them look like hypocrites considering how they completed the last two tasks. (Looking at RR & Jeck’s ice bar answer and waiting for another team to tell them the PSE answer.) Though the other teams still came off just as entitled, we only saw Kelvin’s reasons and didn’t really see other teams’ excuses, so it ended up he looked the worst out of all of them.

Daniel & Charlie must think they are in a Juan Direction episode. Leo & Jamal, watch out. You’ve got competition. And RR & Jeck. They’re like TAR24 Caroline & Jennifer, depending on other teams to do the work for them. The only difference, we can get some good fights between them and RR’s occasional Englishing.

Episode Quotes

Luz: “Magpaganda muna ako, para gumanda naman ako.”

Kelvin: “Nag-aantay lang kami ng sagot.”

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