Recap: The Amazing Race 37, Episode 9 – “I’m about to gag from excitement.”

Recap: The Amazing Race 37, Episode 9 – The Pizza de Résistance

At the Pit Stop, teams use the Expedia app to book their flights and hotels to Naples, Italy which the Race will be visiting “for the first time ever”. All teams get on the same flight.

Upon arrival in Naples, teams find waiting drivers to take them to Castel Sant’elmo. To get there, teams must take the funicular at Stazione di Montesanto to receive their next clue.

That clue tells teams to rub the nose at the Pulcinella Statue and receive the next one from the real life Pulcinella.

Han & Holden and Jonathan & Ana are able to get on the funicular first back down without the other three teams. It’s a footrace amongst all the teams to the statue. And the originally trailing three teams get there first while Han & Holden and Jonathan & Ana are lost.

That waiting clue reveals the Detour: Mandolin or Mozarella. In Mandolin, teams must add the final pieces of a mandolin. In Mozzarella, teams will learn how to and correctly make six mozzarella knots.

Brett & Mark and Carson & Jack arrive at the cheese first and get started. Alyssa & Josiah choose cheese, but can’t find the location.

Jonathan & Ana and Han & Holden finally find the statue. Jonathan & Ana choose the mandolin while Han & Holden go to the cheese and arrive just after Alyssa & Josiah.

At the cheese, Carson & Jack fail their first attempt at a check. Brett & Mark get four approved on their first attempt. Carson & Jack go again and their knots of cheese are now too heavy so they only get one approved.

Brett & Mark just need one more cheese and that allows Carson & Jack to pass them and move into first place. The married couple are right behind them. At the mandolin, Jonathan & Ana are able to finish their instrument and also get the thumbs up. Alyssa & Josiah get their cheese approved next, leaving Han & Holden in last as they are a bit confused.

After the Detour, teams must now head to Vico II Montesanto in the Montesanto Quarter.

Jonathan & Ana arrive first and open the next clue. Teams must now use a pully system to deliver groceries to one of the houses. They will first receive money and a list from a resident lowering them in a bucket. They must then purchase the items including produce, sausages and bread and use the bucket to deliver them to the residents on the upper floor.

Brett & Mark are the next team to start shopping followed by Carson & Jack. Jonathan & Ana get all their items and return to deliver them to the residents just as Alyssa & Josiah arrive. Brett & Mark arrive to make their deliveries. Carson & Jack and Alyssa & Josiah also complete the task even before Han & Holden arrive at the homes.

After the grocery shopping, teams must head to Ristorante da Ettore by driver.

The waiting clue reveals a Road Block: Who’s feeling saucy? For this Road Block, teams must make a pizza from scratch. When approved, the teams will take their pizza and head to the Pit Stop.

Brett, Carson, and Ana start the Road Block. Alyssa arrives and gets started as well. Even though Carson believes he is the worst cook in America, he decides to do this one as Jack will have his maximum six Road Block if he did it.

Ana uses her Domino’s work experience to get her pizza into the oven first. And it gets the thumbs up once cooked. She and Jonathan can now make their way to the Pit Stop at Castel Nuovo.

Carson’s pizza gets the thumbs down while Brett gets his pizza approved. Both Alyssa and Carson’s pizzas can’t even get off the paddle so they must do theirs over again.

Meanwhile, Han & Holden hurry to try and catch up.

Jonathan & Ana arrive at the Mat and deliver the pizza to the welcoming band. Phil officially checks them in as Team #1. They win enough Expedia KeyCash for a trip to Mexico City. Brett & Mark are Team #2.

Back at the Road Block, Carson’s pizza is now too small as Alyssa just puts her next attempt in the oven. Her pizza gets approved. Carson’s next attempt gets the thumbs down again as it is not a circle.

Han & Holden arrive as Jack eats Carson’s failed pizzas. Han decides to do the Road Block and gets started as Carson gets his pizza into the oven.

Carson finally gets his pizza approved and he and Jack hurry to the Pit Stop.

At the Mat, Alyssa & Josiah check-in as Team #3.

Han gets the thumbs up on her pizza. She and Holden hurry to the Pit Stop as well. And it is now, apparently, a footrace.

Carson & Jack step on the Mat and Phil tells them they are Team #4.

That means Han & Holden are last. But Phil surprises them. This is a Non-Elimination Leg! And they are still in the Race.

Episode Thoughts

Definitely a great episode! TAR37 is really shaping up to be truly amazing indeed!

The episode starts off with a great mad dash. Just pure chaos as teams run around Naples. Even starting at the airport and then getting into the city. It was fun. And it is one of the pros of getting to places on foot.

The Detour is good. Both good tasks representative of the local culture and both with their respective challenges and tedious aspects. Thank you Jonathan & Ana for choosing the mandolin otherwise we might not have gotten to see that side of the Detour! Lol

The grocery shopping was wonderful as it got teams interacting with the local peoples. Both the residents in their homes and the small local shops.

The Road Block is good. It’s kinda crazy to think that in 37 seasons of The Amazing Race, this is the first time they had a pizza task. At least, a make pizza task. But it obviously makes sense in Naples. I would’ve had teams need to make specific kinds of pizza. Maybe take orders from locals in Italian. (*takes notes for TARPHDME lolololol)

Considering there’s still three Legs left after this one, I assumed there would be some kind of twist. And I’m happy that it is a Non-Elimination Leg. Not just because it’s Han & Holden who I am rooting for. But because finally the show can stop with their “no Non-Elimination Legs” nonsense they’ve been peddling the last few seasons.

Having Non-Elimination Legs is not a bad thing. And the stunt they were pulling in the last few seasons having Non-Elimination Legs, but just calling them something different was just not it. So it is such a refreshing relief to have a regular ol’ Non-Elimination Leg back on TARUS.

I think this is a great Leg to justify just getting teams on the same flights to one place. Having teams Racing side by side makes for lots of excitement and tension. And considering TARUS’ shorter Legs, anything that can help provide that intense competition like having teams neck and neck together all Leg can really make up for whatever the Legs and episodes might lack.

Overall, this was a pretty great episode. And it is continuing the great momentum this season has had. Every episode has stepped it up from the last which is something you really can’t say for TARUS in recent seasons. Maybe even at least 10 seasons.

So let’s just hope the season finishes strong!

Team Thoughts

Not much to say about the teams this week. Other than this is a great final five and it showed in their competitive nature this Leg and episode. Good fight from the teams all day. Again, they’re friendly and nice to each other. But they also recognize this is a competition. So it is a great watch with the way these teams have Raced so far and how the episodes have played out as well.

Episode Quotes

Mark: “I’m about to gag from excitement.”

Mark: “I hope we eat it!”

Carson: “Thank you Mr. Pizza Man.”