Showing posts with label amazing race asia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label amazing race asia. Show all posts

Monday, October 29, 2012

amazing race philippines pilot episode

being a big amazing race fan for years, i was really excited for today... the premiere of our very own version of the amazing race: the amazing race philippines.

i have watched the US version since season 5 in 2004 (when it was first aired in the philippines by studio 23 because the philippines was one of the destination - just before the finale) and it is already airing season 21 right now and i have not missed a single episode since. not only that, i have also watched all episodes of the 4 seasons of amazing race asia. with that, i am really farmiliar and a big fan of the show.

the show started with all 11 teams being transported via helicopters to the starting line of the race (though it was not shown that the helicopters landed on that exact spot); the historic paco park. the season boasts of a mix of very interesting contestants. knowing filipino reality shows, it was to no surprise that there are celebrities in the cast. there are football players, a popular actress, a noontime show dancer and beauty queens. but despite these, the teams were quite interesting.

the show is hosted by derek ramsay and the winners' price amounts to PhP2 million, which is small compared to the USD 1 million (even up to USD 2 million in season 21) for its US counterpart and even half of the guaranteed price of the asian version.

the show started very well, the ambiance and the shots is really like the US version. i was really amazed on how accurately tv5 edited the clips and make it look like the original amazing race. but my excitement died down a bit when i heard the first clue being read.

the first clue told the racers to head down to the manila yacht club, where they need to find the dock. there, they need to find the marked yacht and decode the nautical phrase from the series of flags that hangs on the yacht. unknown to the racers, there are cheat sheets scattered on several locations in the place, where they can see the equivalent letters of each flag.

when i heard the challenge, i immediately thought that this challenge has been done previously in the US version, they just modified it a bit. and i immediately remembered that this was the roadblock where the cowboys (jet and cord) had difficulty finishing. so, i went through several internet sites (thanks wiki!) and found the similar challenge. it is the first roadblock in australia in the pilot episode of the amazing race season 18: unfinished business.

here is the challenge description from wikipedia ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Amazing_Race_18 ) :

In the Race's first Roadblock, one team member had to scuba dive in the Oceanworld shark and ray tank and search the tank for a compass. The compass included a guide to decode a message hidden in series of nautical flags outside. The correctly decoded message instructed teams to go to the Manly 16 ft Skiff Sailing Club, find the Commodore, and tell him the password "I am Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea" to receive their next clue.

they just modified it but the challenge of decoding the message from the nautical flags is the same. you can also watch the video of the episode here (hope the video survives - i just found it in youtube -
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZZa09Q1np0 )


refer to this part for the challenge explanation: 18:00 - 18:50.

this has been one of the pitfalls of localized versions of reality shows, recycling challenges from the US version of the show. this means lack of creativity and it sometimes turns off several fans of the show. this is also the case with survivor philippines, almost all their challenges in their pilot season were recycled challenges from the US version of survivor. i really hope they make more unique challenges in the next episodes.

the episode was finished even without anyone completing or even starting decoding the nautical message. this is what i hate when you covert a supposed to be one episode a week to an episode a day show. the suspense is killing the fans and it is really bitin. my definition of an amazing race episode  is an episode with at least a roadblock and a detour, and i think this will not happen in amazing race philippines. this is the same adjustment i had to make for survivor philippines.

and not only that, when they showed the next challenge, i immediately recognized it again - another recycled challenge! based on what i saw, the casino challenge is the chance choice in the detour of amazing race asia season 3 episode 7. here is another challenge explanation from wikepedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazing_Race_Asia_3 )

In this leg's Detour, the choice was between Dance or Chance. In Dance, the team members must correctly perform a lion dance routine to the satisfaction of the performance troupe. In Chance, teams must don formal attire and play a game of blackjack in the casino of Hotel Royal Macau; they must beat the dealer nine times (as denoted by the letters of the word COMPLETED) before receiving their next clue.

convinced?

Monday, August 30, 2010

amazing race asia season 4 racers revealed on september 2

the racers of the fourth season of amazing race asia in axn will air on september 2, 2010 at 9pm. who will be the new 10 teams that will race for the 100,000 dollar grand prize? according to the news, this season will feature the show's first father and daughter team and will feature martial artists, tattooist, musicians and social workers.

according to wikipedia, the following are the teams:
1. jess & lani - party girls, philippines
2. richard & richard - friends, philippines
3. ivan & hilda - married, malaysia
4. ethan & khairie - friends, malaysia
5. alan & wendy - dating, hongkong
6. yani & nadine - best friends, indonesia
7. hussein & natasha - father & daughter, indonesia
8. sahil & manas - cousins, india
9. dimple & sunaina - travel buddies, india
10. claire & michelle - rebel pals, singapore

the show will still be hosted by allan wu.

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

amazing race asia: paula taylor will co-host philippine version of "who wants to be a millionaire"

amazing race asia season 2 racer paula taylor will be seen more on philippine television if spreading rumors are true that she will be co-hosting the philippine version of the popular game show who wants to be a millionaire. the show will air in tv 5 and the network decided to revive the show after a network insider was inspired after watching oscar best picture winner slumdog millionaire.

who wants to be a millionaire was first shown in philippine television way back in 2000 with actor christopher de leon as host. the show ran for 2 years and was eventually shelved in 2002. this year, rumors has it that tv 5 will start airing the show in may with a new host, comedian and tv host vic sotto. he will be joined by paula taylor as his co-host.

paula is not a new face in philippine tv. she represented thailand with friend natasha in the second season of the amazing race asia. she then went on to be a vj at channel v and has several tv and print ads here in the philippines. she is also rumored to be the new girlfriend of her fellow amazing race racer and tv host marc nelson.

Friday, March 13, 2009

amazing race asia 2: marc and rovilson has a new tv show

philippines' reality stars marc nelson and rovilson fernandez got a new show in a local television network. the runners up of the second season of amazing race asia will host anew show titled dare duo in qtv channel 11.

in this show, the dynamic duo will tackle a new challenge every week that they need to accomplish on their own. for the pilot episode, the challenge is to oirganize a bridal shower with a limited budget. let's see how these buddies will team up and get the event going and giving the attendees a blast.

the show will premiereon march 14, staurday at around 8:30pm.

this is their second show together, after launching another show last month, titled the duke which is shown every monday night at axn. marc is also co-hosting sports unlimited in abs cbn while rovilson is busy with another show in qtv 11 called ang pinaka which counts down different things each week.

Thursday, January 1, 2009

2008 pinoy reality junkee reality awards

a year has again ended and reality tv is very much alive here in the philippines. i have decided to give away some awards of my own of the best and most unforgettable personalities, events and shows in philippine reality tv. this blog will be updated as my mind remembers some other awards that needs to be given out.

without further ado, here are the awards:

most unforgettable reality moment of the year

winner: alex's circumcision in pinoy big brother teen edition plus - who would forget the first circumcision that happened in a big brother house, and to make it more interesting, it was performed by a doctor and a nurse that is also in the house(guradians doc boy - robi's father and nurse carina - beauty's mother) in front of the male housemates and the whole world!
runner up: marcus indecent exposure in survivor gabon - this gained some critics for the show for poor editing and indecent exposure... but guys, they are running a challenge and it was an accident, can't we understand?
honorable mention: dallas losing their passport in russia at the amazing race season 13 - also a first in amazing race history, losing all their money and passport by leaving the bag in a taxi at a roadblock, eventually leading to their elimination.

most unforgettable elimination in a reality show

winner: kiko rustia in survivor philippines - after forming a strong alliance with his former tribemates in naak, kiko was blindsided by her allies kaye and cris after the ex-jarakay members convinced the 2 to vote against him. he was eliminated with a 5 - 4 vote and became the 2nd jury member. the elimination led to some nasty comments in the internet forums from kiko's fans.
runner up: jon avila's forced eviction in pinoy big brother season 2 - after admiting that he implied that they would give one vote to each other, which manipulated the outcome of the last nomination, jon was given a forced eviction and failed to make it to the big four despite being popular among the fans and texters

fight of the year

winner: terri and henry in amazing race asia season 2 - terri's uncontrolled emotion was no match to henry' macho image. these couple fought their way to 6th place and lasted 8 legs, fighting in each of the leg with terri screaming on top of her lungs each time. poor henry. well, that is true love...
runner up: marlon versus zita in survivor philippines - marlon's fight with zita was the most controversial fight in survivor philippines. whether it was strategy or not, marlon surely got several nasty comments from fans after the episode was aired
honorable mention: laarni lozala versus scholars in pinoy dream academy season 2 - laarni was the most emotionally unstable scholar in pda season 2 and she has several breakdowns in the course of the show. despite this, she still manage to get the top prize and sing her way to the recording contract
honorable mention: veejay floresca versus eli gonzales in project runway philippines - a fight over a tank top used as an accessory, eli talked to the producers about it and spoke in behalf of the other designers. it was the constant parinigan that made the fight intersting, but eventually led to veejay being allowed to use the tank top and the show being stricter in allowing the use of accessories.
honorable mention: john versus anna in pinoy big brother teen edition plus - the fight between josef's and kevin's guardians even led to the misunderstanding inside the house among the housemates. it was quite a show when john even fought with josef in the house's kitchen.

medical emergency of the year

winner: chivas malunda in pinoy dream academy season 2 - chivas is one of the front runners in pda season 2 and his attacks were really bad that he had to be pulled out a couple of times from the academy. he is losing conciousness which has been happening years before when he is stressed. he was given an automatic expulsion after he did not show signs of improvement and his health was more important. despite this, he got to sing the theme song of another reality show, pinoy fear factor.
runner up: john's attack in survivor philippines - despite his good built and strong personality, camp life was never easy for john. at day 8, he was pulled out of the jarakay camp and was rushed to the hospital after he lost conciousness. he returned the day after and revealed that his potassium level dipped down and was the cause of the attack.
honorable mention: jose sarasola's snake bites in pinoy fear factor - not once but twice, jose was bitten twie by snakes in the second stunt of the quarta ronda de eliminacion titled tanque con serpientes . the bites were not poisonous but was painful which affected his performance in the 3rd stunt and led to his elimination in the show.

villain of the year

winner: marlon carmen of survivor philippines - no contest, marlon is definitely the villain of the year in philippine reality tv. dubbed as the bad boy of prime time television, he made his mark after having a fight with almost all of the naak tribe members. but don't get me wrong, i don't hate him and i really liked the way he played the game.

underdog of the year / upset of the year

winner: david cook of american idol season 7 - everyone was expecting david archuletta to win the title for he was so adorable and the fans love him. he was the most downloaded contestant and seems to be on his way to stardom. but david cook came from behind and stole the title from him and eventually became the 7th american idol.
runner up: laarni lozala of pinoy dream academy season 2 - same scenario, everyone was expecting bugoy bugayong to get the top prize but her great voice and mass appeal gave laarni the title and became the 2nd grand star dreamer of the show after yeng constantino.
runner up: adrian & collin in the amazing race asia season 2 - marc & rovilson was a favorite to win the second season of the amazing race asia season two, after topping 8 legs out of the 11 legs (and finishing second in the other 3 legs) before the finale. these two never gave up and what determined the winner was the last roadblock where rovilson fumbled and led to the win of the singapore gym buddies.
honorable mention: bob crowley of survivor gabon - who would have thought that a 57 year old man can still win survivor? with his superb outdorr skills, great mind and strategy, this man won survivor with 5 consecutive individual challenge wins under his belt and eventually winning the ultimate survivor title.

most promising reality star of the year

winner: robi domingo - pinoy big brother teen edition plus - despite losing the title to ejay falcon and placing only 2nd, he went on to be the hottest star among his batch and eventually won a vj search in a music station.
runner up: nikki dacullo of survivor philippines - undoubtedly the most beautiful face among the bunch, nikki is a face to watch out if given the right breaks in showbusiness. she can sing, dance, host and her first acting stint in dear friend was also not bad.
honorable mention: paula taylor of the amazing race asia season 2 - now a vj and a commercial endorser, she is ready for stardom. with a good life and a new found love (marc nelson, as the rumors as saying), she is bound for stardom.

reality twist of the year

winner: double elimination twist in survivor philippines - this has been done in the us version of survivor, but this time, the twist had no sign that it is coming what so ever. this led to the elimination of patani, the most popular castaway then. fans shouted foul on this twist that earned so much criticism for weeks.
runner up: guardians twist of pinoy big brother teen edition plus - the addition of the guardians in the big brother house was a big surprise to the teens but helped us know the housemates better.
honorable mention: the 13th look / male outfit twist of project runway philippines - just as the final 3 designers thought it was over, a twist was revealed that they need to make a 13th look for their collection and surprise, it should be a male outfit.

fan favorite of the year

winner: bugoy bogayan of pinoy dream academy season 2 - who did not fell in love with the story of this young singer from camarines sur? he has no formal voice training, he was poor, he was a working student and is rumored gay, what more can you ask for? but what really struck the fans is the fact that he has a very good voice that can capture your heart.
runner up: zita ortiga of survivor philippines - she is the most popular among the castaways. her great story, never stay die attitude and being amother figure for the castaways was an inspiration for most of the fans of the show.

reality love team of the year

winner: nicole and josef of pinoy big brother teen edition plus - everyone was captivated with the blossoming love they had inside the big brother house, complete with the parents who are against their relationship. and they thanks to the great music of colbie calliat's realize, which is always the music when their moments were shown
runner up: chivas and bunny malunda of pinoy dream academy season 2 - a tale of young lovers that held on to each other for better or for worse. the whole nation witnessed their love for each other inside the academy
honorable mention: veronica and jace of survivor philippines - the love team that stuck together till the end, but unfortunately, it did not extend out of the game. vern is now dating survivor philippines runner up rob sy

blunder of the year

winner: erik giving natalie individual immunity at tribal council in survivor micronesia - erik gave natalie a free pass to the final 4 by giving the immunity necklace to her at the tribal council, believing that he will not be voted out. but the all girls alliance blindsided him and voted him out.
runner up: dallas losing their passport and money in the amazing race - coming in first the previous leg, after dallas lost their passports and all their money, they came in last and was eliminated just before the finale.
honorable mention: rovilson in the final roadblock in amazing race asia season 2 - marc & rovilson was a sure favorite to win the race, but rovilson struggled with the last roadblock which involves arranging the flags of the countries they visited in order which allowed the other teams to overtake them. they finished third.

comeback of the year

winner: parvati shallow of survivor micronesia - she placed 6th in survivor cook islands but came back in survivor micronesia fan versus favorites. she had a great strategy and was the brains behind the all girl alliance and went on to beat amanda in the finale.
runner up: gab valenciano and jasmin abelgas of shall we dance: the search for the next dance superstar - they were eliminated just before the finale, but was invited to compete in a wild carp phase and was able to enter the finals. in the finals, their great partnership and superb skills led them to win the title.

most deserving winner

winner: jc tiuseco of survivor philippines - despite the criticism at the start of the season and the spoilers that got out in the net and the news, i think jc really deserved the prize as the sole survivor of the first season of survivor philippines. with his great social skills and strategy, jc played the game well despite stepping on some toes on the way
runner up: luis palaganas, jr. of my mvp - the most consistent among the bunch of basketball hopefuls in the show. works hard and is very well liked by the other competitors, he really deserves the prize and the title.
honorable mention: ejay falcon of pinoy big brother teen edition plus - this young lad from mindoro won the heart of the pbb fans with the love he showed to his family and to his loveteam valerie. his hardwork and perseverance paid off and he won the top plum and is currently doing some modeling stints
honorable mention: gab valenciano and jasmin abelgas of shall we dance: search for the next dance superstar - great pair and they can really dance. great partnering and really works hard. they were eliminated but entered the finals through a wildcard competition and eventually moved on and won the title.

most unexpected winner

winner: gretchen espina of pinoy idol - yes, this girl can sing and she is from the same school as i am (though different campus). but so many of her competitotrs is way better than her. and where is she now? aside from her sunday stint at sop, i don't hear anything about her anymore.


best reality host of the year

winner: jeff probst of survivor - yes, i still think jeff probst is still the best reality show host there is. he has the balance of seriousness and fun that a host should have, and i still do think that the original is still the best.
runner up: paolo bediones of survivor philippines - he had a rough start in survivor philippines but did well towards the end of the show. his hosting skill is very good and his blogs at the official site made fans understand the show better plus the fact that he participated in several live chat sessions with the cast offs.
honorable mention: terasa herrera of project runway philippines - the right combination of wit and poise, she hosted the maiden season of project runway philippines with ease. she seems so kind and carries herself well. she seems to be comfortable with the show despite the fact that this is her first television show.best reality host of the year.
honorable mention: allan wu of amazing race asia - the most improved among the bunch. i think he is now more comnfortable compared to the first season and now builds raport with the contestants.

reality host that needs improvement

winner: billy crawford of pinoy dream academy season 2- he has to improve his tagalog if he wants to host a tagalog reality show. the king of stutter, it is very obvious when he forgets his lines and he usually rely on cue cards and idiot boards, its quite distracting, needs to be more spontaneous
runner up: jon avila and victor basa of shall we dance: the search for the next dance superstar - actually they are okay in front of the camera but jon needs to improve his diction since he is incomprehesible most of the times. victor is too focused on his lines that he lacks spontaneity.

 
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