‘The Amazing Race 21’ finale: Ranking Chippendales, Twinnies, and everyone else

The Amazing Race 21 CastDoes anyone else feel as though we are in for a pretty great finale for “The Amazing Race 21” Sunday night? It’s not often that there are four teams that are so different from each other that make it so far, especially when it comes to the differences between all of them. We have teams of all different backgrounds, and there are two male/male teams to go with a male/female and a female/female team. Even if you criticize the season for being a little too nice, there is at least no one left who would make absolutely awful winners.

It’s hard to really rank a show like this as we do “Survivor” since so much of it is based on luck, but given that the finale is almost here we figured it best to try and pick who think is the most likely to actually win the million bucks in the end. We consider race performance as the main deciding factor here, but the edit here in that some teams have been set up as more likable people than others.

4. Natalie & Nadiya – You see, the only reason we have the Twinnies ranked last here is because they have the most to overcome courtesy of a speed bump. They have been pretty strong throughout, and if this is one of the easier tasks the show has given out here (i.e. eat ice cream), then they could be back in the thick of things soon.

Even if they lose here, these two are one of the two teams remaining that we could see coming back for another go at the race in the future. Whether you love them or hate them, you have an opinion about them and that is hugely important for this show. There are not that many all-female teams out there who bring as much to the race as they do and are so consistently entertaining to watch.

3. Josh & Brent – Now, we turn to the darkhorse team. If you have noticed the editing lately, we have some sort of strange feeling as if the Beekman Boys could end up pulling this off. They’ve been given this sort of “us against the world” arc, even though none of the other teams have really been mean to them. All we know is that these two guys fought with each other constantly on their other reality show, but it’s not being shown so much here. Our guess? Either they are getting along better on the race, or are being given a positive edit to look like decent winners.

Conspiracy theory aside, the fact that these two guys love each other and have been through a lot is probably their biggest strength. They won’t get discouraged by anything, even if they are pretty lucky to still be here (mostly thanks to the other teams getting rid of Abbie & Ryan) and may be the worst winners of the show since Zach & Flo back in season 3.

2. Jaymes & James – The Chippendales are our other future season candidates here, and for one simple reason: they are really entertaining. They get along well, have a sense of humor, and have done better in challenges now that they have gone deep into the show. Plus, they have been shown to be more than just Chippendales and are fighting for their families.

So could the newly-revealed emotional stories be a strong winners’ edit? It’s possible, though we also have a feeling that this could just be a cleverly-disguised look at a team that finishes in second. They may be our favorite team of the season, but they have been too inconsistent to really count on for sure.

1. Trey & Lexi – Let’s differentiate here between the worst winners in a while and the least interesting winners. Josh & Brent would at least be a memorable win, and they are interesting characters. Trey & Lexi, meanwhile, are pretty much the same as twenty other couples who have been on the show before. The last two teams that have won (Ernie & Cindy, Dave & Rachel) have also been young couples, and the “Race” is better when things stay fresh.

Let’s be clear here that we are not trying to slam these two in any shape or form. Trey & Lexi seem like very nice people, and would probably use the money pretty well. They’ve also won more legs than any of the other teams left. It’s just that they are not a team that will get people talking on the street.

Who do you think is the most likely team to win this season? Be sure to vote in the poll below, and you can take a look back at this past episode here.

Photo: CBS

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