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Remember when the tasks were actually culturally linked to the place the racers where in? Now the location is merely a backdrop for pie throwing, Segway riding, driving a snow plow, etc - tasks that you could do almost anywhere.

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It seems the producers are so keen to put it "promo-worthy" moments (like TAR11's stunt-driving, the tilt-cars in TAR12, cake-throwing this season) and are ignoring things that will actually make the race interesting as a race instead of just pure spectacle (the only elimination so far to have been at all the result of tasks has been Linda/Steve - and even then that was only because the original task couldn't go as planned).

Almost every decent task this season has required only the skill of "carry this heavy thing" (cheese, coffins, gypsy junk, water and hay, barrels, rickshaw) - the only exception is the wood-pile. TAR13's tasks were a step in the right direction in having a good mix of cultural/mental/physical tasks related to the country (Kazakhstan excluded).

Look at TAR2's Bangkok vs. this Phuket leg. The TAR2 tasks were incredibly simple tasks: go to a market to burn a car or free some birds - but it's one of the most enjoyable episodes ever because he teams were left to fend for themselves with public transport and obscure out of the way destinations. The bat cave was far more real and "dangerous" than posed pictures with elephants - I'm sure thousands of tourists do that at Phuket Zoo but how many risk walking through hundreds of bats?

But if you want solid proof that a great cast can liven up an average task compare TAR14 and TAR8. Both had nearly identical "rickshaw/buggy" tasks. TAR8, which had a good cast, produced classic moments like the amazing near-MamaWeaver-death and the Gaghans singing merrily passing the Aiellos. TAR14's produced...a penalty that made hardly any difference and someone being exhausted