So, we are embarking in a new season with a cast of supposed stars. What will the editing reveal this season? There doesn’t seem to be a lot of enthusiasm generated by this casting decision, so hopefully we’ll get into it as the race starts. The return of old favorites or hated teams gives us a different way to approach the season: How will the players have changed from what we remember of them? It will be important to note anything different and our task could be to see if the changes come from new strategies, players having learned from their previous season, or are the editors treating a team differently.

-If we see racers that seem to have learned from their previous try and are attempting to change their strategy, then we’ll have to assess whether that gives them a chance to improve their result or not.

-If it seems to be the editors giving us different insights into the personnality of the racers then we’ll have to determine where that leads them.

I didn’t see seasons 1 and 2, so I’ll need input on those teams and our memories can be vague on others. So here is what I’ve gathered on some teams and what I remember of the others. If you have more accurate insights and clearer memories, it will be appreciated. As a reminder, this thread is intended for SPECULATION only. If you have source spoilers or know of a sighting of teams in a late leg, that information is very valuable to a spoiler board and deserves its own thread. We simply like to work it out on our own in this thread…however wrong we may be sometimes!

Kevin & Drew(TAR1): The Festers were fun to watch and finished in 4th. They were eliminated when their taxi got caught in traffic. If they are used only for comic relief, I wouldn’t expect better results.

Joe & Bill(TAR1): Team Guido were villains and were hated by many. They should create conflicts with other teams. They were last in legs 9 and 10 where they were saved by a penalty imposed on another team and a non-elimination leg. They barely beat The Festers in leg 11 but were a full leg behind the leaders in the finale.

Oswald & Danny(TAR2): Team cha-cha-cha were fun to watch but better shoppers than racers. They finished 4th and had a couple of first place finishes but in the second half of the season, they were often in the back of the pack. They were very popular on the CBS site.

John Vito & Jill(TAR3): Had a lot of sympathy and were popular on the CBS site but they seem to have been easily forgotten by many. As racers, they didn’t shine, never finishing higher than 3rd without the Fast Forward.

Teri & Ian(TAR3): They were shown complaining a lot so they should be the dysfunctional couple again. Their popularity ratings were low so they’d need quite a make-over to appear worthy of being “All-Star winners.” They did have a strong second place finish but had very poor early legs which could be fatal this time.

Charla & Mirna(TAR5): Their story was mainly about doing better than what the others expected and Mirna complaining about everyone in general and Colin in particular. They finished 6th but did have 3 second place finishes in their 7 legs. Other teams ganged up on them to get rid of them so I don’t expect they will make any alliances this time either.

Rob & Amber(TAR7): They were shown as racers who added a lot of strategy and dirty tricks in their quest for first place. They had fun racing and were a good team, that is, one in which Rob made all the decisions. If other teams propose to make an alliance, Rob should find a way to turn it to his advantage. They had 5 first place finishes and only once finished lower than third. That was leg #3 where they got 2 other teams to take the same penalty they had taken earlier. Many hate them but that is what makes them fun to watch: Rob is never bland and he knows how to create emotions and Amber is nice decoration.

Eric & Danielle(TAR9): A new team that did have some interactions during their race. Neither was portrayed as a smart racer. If they were to go far, it would be something to change in the way their story is told. If their story focuses on their relationship, that could be an indication they don’t go far.

David & Mary(TAR10): The heart of the back-pack alliance, they were the surprise darlings of last season. They were never shown as good racers so we’d need to see an evolution in their approach to the game to make them worthy of reaching the end of the race. Will they make a new alliance? I doubt very much that they can find anyone like the Chos. Here, we have quite a few more sharks than angels.

Dustin & Kandice(TAR10): We started hearing Phil comment that they could be the first female team to win the amazing race at about the time this race was reaching its final stages of filming. Was it a hint of things to come or simply publicity? We’ll take it as an early indication they could be going far again. They were good racers and navigators who wanted so much to prove themselves, they took risks and made uneccessary enemies. Will we see a change in their story or their strategy?

Uchenna & Joyce(TAR7): They are the only winners. That time, they were given a very sympathetic storyline. We heard them talk about wanting a family and we saw them interacting with kids along the way. After episode #2, they were always in the top three. Unless they are the winners, I expect they won’t be given much airtime. Their story has been told the first time.

That is what I see before the season starts. Any thoughts?