Oh, the glory of the Amazing Race non-elimination leg. The change in emotions of the last place team as Phil breaks the good news (that they're not eliminated) is as uplifting as the end of a "Full House" episode. The team thinks they're eliminated, they think they're going home, they think their million dollar dream has been vanquished, but no! The Gods of Reality TV have shined down upon them, bearing the mightiest TV gift of all: more time on the air.
Last night's episode saw coal miner and wife David and Mary (aka "Team Kentucky") bring up the rear and finish last at the pit stop, situated in Chennai, India. They made a myriad of mistakes on the leg and it would be fair to say that they deserved to be eliminated from The Amazing Race. And they well might be by the end of next episode. This season, The Amazing Race has new rules regarding last place teams on non-elimination legs. David and Mary, contrary to previous Amazing Race seasons, will get to hold on to their belongings and money. However, they are now, in the words of Phil, "marked for elimination". This means that unless David and Mary come in first place at the next episode's pit stop, they will incur a thirty minute penalty. Thirty minutes can be a lot or a little, depending upon the difficulty of the leg (and, for the viewer, depending on CBS's creative editing). My guess is that David and Mary will be eliminated next episode. They are likable and open-minded people, but they're overdue for elimination and now are at a severe disadvantage with the time penalty. Other thoughts from The Amazing Race:

• Peter continues to be an absolute jerk. He talks smack about everyone behind their backs, including insensitive remarks about David and Mary being, you know, "hicks".
• I'm now openly rooting for Rob and Kimberly, whose relationship is in constant turmoil, yet always entertaining. This was, by far, their most mild episode. They had no full-on arguments and the bickering was kept to a minimum.
• Erwin and Godwin are way too nice for their own good.
• We've known Tyler and James were recovering addicts, but up until last night, we didn't know from what. I always pictured the two of them blowing lines at some posh L.A. nightclub. Turns out these guys were hardcore Heroin addicts. Wow. My apologies, guys, for my first impression of you. I'm happy to see that you're all better now.
• And, finally, let's talk about the beauty queens. The bitchiness that you would assume would be present with two former beauty queens is nowhere to be found. Dustin and Kandice are actually pretty likable. Not only that, they are good competitors and seem to have a real shot at winning this whole thing. Behind Rob and Kimberly, they're the two I'm rooting for the most.

-Oscar Dahl, BuddyTV Senior Writer