‘The Amazing Race 24’ cast: Still an all-stars, but with a few changes

Do you like seeing returning players on “The Amazing Race“? Personally, we do, but we’re also somewhat torn on how in the world we see them appear. For example, fairness really matters here more than any other show, since we don’t want to see people coming on the show a third time against people who have only raced twice. Also, there are so many boring teams over the years that you really need to get the perfect characters.

Overall, we can’t say that we’re thrilled with some of the changes that have been made since the original rumored cast list was linked for “The Amazing Race 24,” which was meant to be an all-star season. We lost the dominant snowboarders Andy & Tommy from that list, along with that entertainment dynamite that was Tim & Marie from this season. We do have a team from this current season back in the mix, but we’re pretty sure that you will be split over seeing them again.

Note that we’re not going to be posting any outcome spoilers, since we believe that those who want to watch the race spoiler-free should be given the opportunity to do so. We just know that there is an interest in seeing the cast, and therefore, we’re happy to share this information. This was originally compiled by Reality Fan Forum, who are the masters of following teams around the globe and figuring out who is on a given season.

1. Brendon & Rachel – Of course, Brenchel would be back. You may hate them, but we love them and find them to be entertainment gold. Not only will they fight with other people, but they’ll fight with each other.

2. Caroline & Jennifer – Wait, was there a demand to see the crying country singers again? They weren’t really a strong team the first time around.

3. David & Connor – This was a near-lock, given that they probably would have been favorites to win season 22 had David not suffered a devastating ACL injury early in the race.

4. Flight Time & Bid Easy – We like the guys, but hate the casting. They’ve already done this twice, and we don’t really feel like there is any story left to tell with them given that they will probably do very well, but not win the race in the end.

5. Jet & Cord – We feel the same way about the cowboys. On paper, they seem more capable of winning than anyone, but even in two seasons they made a number of reckless, silly mistakes. Not real excited about this one.

6. Joey & Meghan – It’s understandable that these two YouTubers would be back since they are entertaining. We would have preferred a few other teams over them, but it’s not a terrible move.

7. John & Jessica – Seriously? There are only two things that are memorable about this team: They hilariously left with an Express Pass, and John has a terrifying smile. They’re pretty boring otherwise, and therefore will probably win the whole season.

8. Leo & Jamal – Yep, the Afghanimals are back. This isn’t a surprise, given that they are big characters; but, at the same time, we don’t really feel like they are good racers outside of being in shape. They lie when they don’t need to, and they’re influenced too easily by decisions that other teams make. We’ll be very surprised if they win the race this time.

9. Mallory & Mark – This is the strangest team on the entire season. Mallory has run twice before with her dad Gary, but for some reason, she is running this time with Mark of Mark & Bopper fame. We don’t even get how they know each other, let alone why they are racing together. Was Bopper unavailable to go?

10. Margie & Luke – Ugh. We really didn’t need to see these to a third time on this leg. Yes, it’s inspiration that Luke can do this show while hearing impaired; but outside of that, he’s never done really anything to appeal himself to viewers.

11. Natalie & Nadiya – Twinnies! Seriously, we’re happy about this in that like Leo & Jamal, they’re big characters that add some diversity. Unlike Leo & Jamal, we actually feel like they are pretty good racers with a shot of actually winning the whole show. We’d still pick John & Jessica or Dave & Connor over them, but they’ll be around a while.

To us, the biggest omissions here have to be Tim & Marie from this season, along with the Chippendales, grandparents Bill & Cathi (even if they probably wouldn’t have done well), or married couple Max & Katie. All were entertaining, and we’d prefer to see three of them in the place of some of the three-time players.

Photo: CBS