COUSIN WATCH: Well... That's It, Then.
Warning: Spoilers ahead for Episode 9 of The Amazing Race Canada!
Well.
I missed The Amazing Race Canada last night.
And apparently I chose a VERY BAD WEEK to do that.
I woke up today, went looking to see how our cousins Sacha and Sébastien did and discovered the news I have been trying to avoid all season:
The cousins are out.
NOOOOOOOO.
After making it all the way to the Final Four, Sacha and Sébastien were eliminated in Manitoba, just one leg short of the finale.
Cousin Watch has officially ended.
I am not taking it particularly well.
Four Teams. Three Spots.
This week's episode, appropriately titled “It's Math Time,” took the final four teams through Winnipeg and Gimli, Manitoba, with one very simple, and horrifying, equation:
Four teams.
Three spots in the finale.
One team going home.
Unfortunately, we now know which team that was.
Sacha and Sébastien.
Not the Tires!
And because simply coming in last wasn't painful enough, the cousins also ran into transportation trouble.
From the reactions I've read, their taxi developed tire trouble. And after the first tire incident, some viewers were practically shouting at them to abandon ship and find another cab.
Hindsight, of course, is a wonderful thing.
When you're actually racing, under pressure, trying to make decisions in seconds, I'm sure everything looks very different.
Still...
A TIRE?
This is how Cousin Watch ends?
Not because a beaver defeated them?
Not because they couldn't shuck a scallop?
Not because someone couldn't dance, paddle, build, mix music or perform some other completely unreasonable task dreamed up by The Amazing Race Canada?
A tire?
I object.
But There Was Something Much Bigger in This Episode
There was another moment from Sacha that deserves far more attention than a flat tire or a finish line.
During the episode, Sacha spoke openly about his diagnosis of schizophrenia.
The reaction from viewers has been overwhelmingly supportive, with people commenting on how meaningful it was to see someone speak so candidly about a condition that is still so often misunderstood.
And perhaps that's a much better thing to remember from their final leg.
All season, I've been cheering for Sacha and Sébastien because they're cousins. And because around here that was enough to turn an ordinary television show into Cousin Watch.
But they gave us plenty of other reasons to cheer.
They were competitive. They were funny. They had some spectacular legs and some decidedly less spectacular ones. They won legs. They survived the chaos. Last week, when two teams had to go home, they finished second and made the Final Four.
And they made it to within one leg of the finale.
That's one heck of a race.
So Long, Cousins
When I started writing these Cousin Watch posts, I really didn't expect them to become a weekly thing.
But somewhere along the way, watching Sacha and Sébastien became part of my summer.
Every Tuesday:
Where are the cousins?
How are the cousins doing?
WHY ARE THE COUSINS IN SIXTH?!
THE COUSINS WON!!!
And occasionally:
OH FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE, BOYS.
It's been fun.
Next week, the final three teams head to Calgary for the season finale.
Will I watch?
Probably.
Will it be the same?
Absolutely not.
Because the fundamental purpose of The Amazing Race Canada, as far as I've been concerned for the last nine episodes, has been to keep the cousins in the race.
Apparently nobody explained that to the producers.
Thanks for the ride, Sacha and Sébastien.
You made us proud.
And Cousin Watch is officially signing off.
Unless, of course, you two show up on another reality show.
In which case I reserve the right to start this nonsense all over again.
Enjoy our other Cousin Watch blog posts
Cousin Watch: Digby to Saint John
Cousin Watch: Good-bye to the Sisters