Return of the Racers

What do you do if you're a network executive with a show so amazingly bad it makes "Cop Rock" look amazingly cool? You replace it with something that's been proven to work for the network.

CBS, faced with the failure of its forgetable show "Viva Something or the Other" launched the 12th edition of the "Amazing Race" last night. "Race" actually wasn't supposed to be launched until sometime this winter but the network needed a show NOW. Apparently "Race" was ready to go, so it was launched NOW a little early.

Eleven couples are racing this time around. You have your usual array of family relationships (including a father/daughter team that I really want to root for). You have dating couples again. And to throw a couple of unique combinations into the mix, you have a Goth couple and a married lesbian clergy couple (wow).

Teams started at the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles. Sorry, there were no models greeting the teams only host Phil Keoghan (pictured above) and a fleet of Chrysler Aspens taking the teams to LAX airport so they could make their first destination in Ireland (1st time AR visit). In Ireland, teams did a variety of tasks including a Road Block where bicycles were rode across a wire 200ft over the ocean. Oh yeah, their partners were carried underneath. Honestly, the picture shown here doesn't do the visual of this challenge justice. Donkeys made asses of a couple of teams including one that went from one of the leaders to all the way back thus leading to their elimination. Which shows that nothing is ever guaranteed on this show.

More reports of this show as the weeks progress.

BTW, I wish I could take credit for the "Cop Rock" comparison but my sister made the analogy last night in a phone conversation she and I had.