Race Across the World

It is impossible to talk about this show without talking about another show: The Amazing Race. Both shows are quite different and I love both.

However The Amazing Race stopped being a race some years ago and now is just "an amazing tour around the world" where the teams are flown from place to place and then compete in challenges.

In the Race Across the World we go back to the roots and the teams are really racing.

I love this show. The teams really need to plan their trip and then they need to race. You get to see places that you wouldn't see otherwise and it is all about the race. Since each team is free to pick the itinerary you will see different routes and styles of travel.

The teams also find jobs here and there to collect additional money to keep traveling. I find those misleading because they are easy to find everywhere and are relatively well paid. That is the unrealistic part of the show. In real live it would have been hard to find those jobs, but at least give us a good look into the life of the locals and many times the racers learn valuable lessons.

Overall both shows complement themselves and are both recommended for anyone that enjoys shows about travel.

Here the pace is quite high and each episode is one leg, where the contestants need to reach a new checkpoint, many miles away from the starting point.

When it's good, its great but there's a hell of a lot of back (and sob) story repeated over and over again. Totally unnecessary. Really doesn't need a presenter and should stick to current format.

What I always wished reality shows like Amazing Race were like, a real race without the games or collusion or host getting in the way. Who can think on their feet, navigate an unknown country, communicate without language, and strategize over maps and transportation connections? The twist is, without modern technology, which was really only 10 years ago when we didn't have smart phones, had to use sketchy internet cafes or better yet, rely on helpful (and sometimes not) strangers. To round it out, a narrator keeps the viewer focused and shares just enough entertaining historical or current events about the different locations the teams visit to bring fun, hope, thrill and compassion to the show.

Really easy viewing for all the family and a nice escape from the world's troubles right now! They pick great characters and I hope they keep making more of them.

Anyone going into this expecting The Amazing Race is going to be let down but as a fan of TAR, this was a much welcomed change in pace.

Season 1 was really well done and the travel was interesting. I enjoyed the back stories and "story arcs" for each team. The lack of continuous elimination was very much welcomed because I personally can't stand pack toxicity when it comes to this style show. I really hate forced drama. Edited suspense wasn't too bad until the last couple episodes but wasn't awful (i.e. 2 teams look like they're neck and neck to reach the check in but in reality they were 2 hours apart). The winning team wasn't my favorite but they still earned it.

Season 2 left a little bit to be desired but was still watchable. Central and South America have similar landscapes and climates so the diversity wasn't quite as vast. Still beautiful though. I feel like the team backstories weren't quite as interesting/inspiring as season 1. Not to say their past isn't relevant, just didn't quite have the charm as the previous teams. Towards the end, I really started to not enjoy a couple of them due to their predictability and confrontations. Thankfully the winning team this season was my favorite throughout and I think it was their groundedness that kept me cheering them on.

All in all, it's worth a binge if you're in the market for a new competition show for the first season alone. Season 2 is still enjoyable, just a little different.