I agree wholeheartedly with that first statement. And I would rather watch an episode full of great dishes than somebody crashing and burning any day of the week (at least on this show).

Ahhhhh…. Louis.

But would anybody bet against us? We can't all be on the same side :)

mmmmm… Tommy Flanagan…. yessssssssssssss :)

I was hoping Maggie Siff's new retro hair in the post-show was going to mean she was going back to Mad Men, but I really need to stop wishing things like that.

omg how fucking gratuitous was scene of him running over the bird. gross. and, as you said, hideously hamfisted.

Even though I was pulling for Tara to live, I was soooo glad that Gemma was the one to do it, rather than Jax. It would have been entirely too disappointing otherwise. Unfortunately, I have a feeling I will have to wait all of season seven for that crazy bitch to get her comeuppance (if at all - Gemma has that…

I thought for sure that we would get some kind of wasabi eating task when the phrase in the phone booth translated to "Eat Wasabi." Suffice it to say, I was disappointed.

I'm not gonna lie…. Japan is typically my favorite spot in TAR. They always have them do fun/funny stuff.

She *might* have squeaked through over Justin if her dish hadn't also been bad, but it was really a double whammy.

It was sort of sad because his skill in the front of the house just highlighted just how mediocre his cooking is.

lol too funny - i was just sitting here trying to figure out which parentheses were paired with the others. having had many moments like that, it made me chuckle :)

I suspect Caleb's options will open up significantly after Survivor. Him and his cute little bearded self!

I still don't like her, but I definitely have a lot more respect for her now. She's such a beast in challenges - and I respect any woman who can make a bunch of manly men eat her dust. I find myself being reminded of Denise's physicality, which was just awesome.

Ever since last season's crazy tribals, I never feel like I know what's going to happen in the end anymore. I love that!

I was actually surprised that Hayden didn't go to work on Monica before Ciera. Monica is notoriously paranoid (as evidenced earlier this season), so I would have tried to poison that well a long time ago with talk of being #4, losing to Tyson, etc.

lol… can't argue with that.

I don't know why, but it's so endearing to me (in a jelly knees kind of way) when Danny wears those red granny glasses down at the end of his nose. How freaking cute is that?

I do like it when the show tries to inject at least a little bit of humor into the episodes. I had several laughs this episode, not the least of which was Juice's face when he was commenting on Bobby's two-hand package to West.

I'm always surprised at how many people are baffled by the fact that
Tara chose Jax. It makes me think my own misspent youth and dangerous
attractions were more unique than I thought they were. Haven't most
women (even those of us who should know better) been wildly attracted
to a bad boy at some point in their life?