Japan was the destination in this week's rather anticlimactic episode, which featured minimal team bitchery, maximum Hippie angst, and no elimination whatsoever.

One elimination to go until the finale. Who would make it? Would Nate and Jen rip each other to shreds first? Would Chris leave Ronald stranded on a rock somewhere? Would the Hippies get distracted by some clouds and wander away, never to be seen again? Would Donald remain old?

Ronald started off by making a pretty good case for leaving him stranded on a rock. He harangued a taxi-driver on the way to the airport while Chris berated him for his rudeness. At least he's not bitching at you for once, Chris. "I'm an old fart who relies on emotion," Ron confessed. Is "pompous know-it-all" an emotion now?

Not with it

The Hippies were just not with it. Well, even less with it than usual. At the airport, they booked a bad flight without finding out whether the other teams' flight would land in Osaka first. They began to get worried when they boarded their connection flight and didn't see another soul. Imagine, not being able to enjoy a Nate-and-Jen-free flight because you're too worried they're ahead of you. Poor Hippies.

The other three teams landed in Japan first by a good margin. Nate and Jen were the first team off the plane and in a taxi, much to Jen's delight. She vowed to kick the old teams' asses. What ageism! Puh-lease, Donald and Ronald could take you any day, without even breaking a hip. Hell, Ronald alone would give you mental scars your therapist would need years to heal.

After the chaos of India, Donald was glad to be in a first world country. He said that Japan was a clean and wonderful country. Yeah, I've never seen smog that pure a grey before.

The Gong of Upcoming Comic Mishap

Christina had an advantage. She had spent a few months in Japan before and therefore knew how to speak Japanese. Despite this, she had trouble getting her bearings and understanding the confusing road signs. "I'm glad I'm never driving in Japan," Chris said, her sigh of relief drowned out by the Gong of Upcoming Comic Mishap.

We soon learned the reason for the gong when the Roadblock was revealed. The chosen team-member had to drive a taxi through the streets of Japan without killing themselves, their passengers, or driving into the ocean.

Even though the clue specifically mentioned driving, and Chris is a self-admittedly poor driver, she chose to do it anyway. Hey, she can't be any worse than half the taxi drivers they've had. The instructions where the drivers had to go were written in Japanese and they were not allowed to ask their passengers what the hell was going on. Not that the passengers would have told them even if they were allowed. They were clearly enjoying the clueless Americans' flailing.

I do wish the customers were as pushy as the teams can be, just for the full taxi-driving experience. They kept silent, all the while making faces at each other and the camera. And here I thought the Japanese were supposed to be polite.