This show feels like Race Across the World (RATW) but in different locations each episode and with eliminations.
It’s ok… started off alright but dragging a bit as the episode goes on.
I was hoping they’d go with that show instead of this. It feels kind of confusing to follow.
Though perhaps they’re not too keen on pursuing RATW because of the fact that The Amazing Race is still on 10 (and faltering badly).
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Just seemed like a massive Amazing Race rip off but with so much less action. How does TAR fit multiple challenges from multiple teams into an episode whereas Rush had one thing about scoring a goal against a local group of kids and the rest seemed like just a navigation challenge. There was a restriction in spending but that was just like TAR. It was different to Race Around the World where they need to manage accommodation as well.
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Yes after seeing the whole thing it felt like cheap Amazing Race but without the intensity and the choosing who to eliminate just felt plain wrong as a concept.
I would’ve preferred Race Across the World if Nine wanted to commission something in travel adventure. At least that show is unique.
RATW has various points where they have to navigate too particular hotels and check-in to see where they rank to the other teams. The way that they were checking into hotels like that and navigating long distances over 3 days is what gave me the RATW vibes. TAR legs are usually one city/location with multiple tasks (often completed in a day or 24 hour period).
I was watching DWTS but was crossing over during breaks etc. It seemed to be a bit of a cross between TAR and RATW but it was still interesting. These days on TAR you don’t often see teams running out of money, whereas on RATW it’s all about making sure you have enough money. Also their watches letting them know what place they’re in is very similar to the book at each checkpoint in RATW. I’ll definitely watch it again.
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Nine will have to be hoping for a massive turn around with episode one managing just 301k metro viewers.
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Executives will be thankful for Ashes and Wimbledon too plus another SOO as fallbacks though. Maybe lots of encores to come, Saturday prime time?
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They should have just launched it tonight. That would have made a lot more sense.
Yeah that was my feel too. The part of the format that I liked were the similarities to RATW - being more about travel and navigating to certain points on a limited budget. I didn’t mind them having a more real world task as TAR can get quite gimmicky these days. Although I get that for that reason, it might not grab viewers as much.
The problem for me was that the episode started strong when they were bang right in the middle of Rio Carnival but then they immediately left that location. It seemed a lost opportunity not to make them do something there (instead of maybe that soccer match). The show seems to be going to a lot of locations during big events like that (e.g. I believe they go to Tomorrowland Winter) but if that’s just a starting point to the leg then it’s a bit disappointing. Hopefully they can leverage those moments a bit more.
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Back to the drawing board for Nine. Apart from MAFS and Travel Guides they haven’t really landed a hit this year especially with their new formats The Summit and Rush.
If they really wanted to do something in the adventure genre then Race Across the World or something out of the blue like Race to the Centre of the Earth would work much better.
Seven’s Blow Up and MDM say hello.
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In all seriousness though, has reality TV’s bubble burst here ATM? TVB was discussing it on their pod recently.
Seven’s programming should’ve been sent to the dogs ages ago.
I was discussing it here weeks ago. 
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Just these garbarb copycat shows. Come up with an original concept and stop trying to mimic existing formats. Doesn’t always work, but it can be done. Hunted was one of the top shows of last year.
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Am watching tonight’s episode (because I got bored of Masterchef and Million Dollar Flop doesn’t interest me) and man, Team Scarlet is such a bunch of sooks. From yesterday till today they’ve been doing nothing other than whinge their way across the globe. Just grow up seriously 
Episode 2
Eleven brave Aussies continue the global adventure of a lifetime, where they are blindfolded and dropped in the middle of Istanbul, Turkey. At the drop, teams remove their blindfolds to reveal they are in the middle of a sacred mosque experiencing the haunting sounds of the dawn call to prayer. When the race to the Escape Zone begins, our three teams, Team Gold, Team Navy and Team Scarlet navigate hundreds of kilometres across Turkey, witnessing the beautiful architecture of the Basilica Cistern, the awkwardly painful experience of a Turkish bath and go hunting for some traditional Turkish delight.
The pressure of the race hits Team Navy and Team Gold when they both run out of money, hundreds of kilometres away from the Escape Zone. While both teams resort to making money off the locals, only one team is successful.
Rush looks like a certified flop. Despite no competition from The Ashes, Monday’s episode rated lower than Sunday. We can wonder what might have been had the show launched on Monday.
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Episode 2 was much better than the first. I don’t mind it so far but maybe knowing one of the contestants keeps it more interesting. It definitely feels more and more like RATW than TAR when you have limited budgets, teams running out of money / selling things to get by and interacting with genuine locals (as opposed to a lot of OTT set ups on TAR).
The vote off format doesn’t seem to be handled well though. It feels more like one person’s name gets flung up and then everyone jumps on them, given a tie means a random boot. With such small teams it doesn’t leave much room. You would think that they would have to merge into 2 teams after a couple more episodes as some teams could be down to 2.
I don’t like that a team can sell jewellery to make up money for the leg. It seems to defeat the purpose of having a spending limit and disadvantages those teams that had spent wisely. What’s the point of a spending limit if everyone who goes on the show loads up on jewellery or other items they can pawn off during the race? Might as well scrap the limit.
The strategy, so far, seems pretty lame. Didn’t anyone think of hitchhiking or looking around for a free ride from a local like happens a lot on RATW.
Seems like the producers added in these challenges as an afterthought in the format? They don’t seem to have any point as there doesn’t seems to be any advantage or disadvantage in undertaking the tasks. Last night - go and get a Turkish massage doesn’t matter where. Then go to a shop and buy some lollies and give them to the host at the end of the leg.
This is what happens when you cut and paste reality formats - you lose what made the originals great.
And no amount of calling something an “escape zone” means it isn’t a pitstop 
Agree. Pitstop and checkpoint are both fine, but ‘escape zone’ doesn’t make sense, cos what are they escaping from? And last night they ‘escaped’ in their little Taksi!
What happens to any money left over in a leg? I think it was Team Scarlet who had quite a bit of money left in the first episode. Do they get to keep it and convert it to the new currency or is it given back to the producers? Or perhaps will this come into play later in the series?