Popcorn and Twizzlers

Next Monday is the finale of Treasure Hunters. As you may know, the three teams to make it to the end are The Geniuses, The Southie Boys, and Air Force. In the last episode, they left us in a cliff-hanger style with all three teams still in action, so close to the treasure they can taste it. The Genii (as team Ex-Cia was fond of calling them) seem like they are a hair away from cracking the puzzle, but still haven't figured out what clue will tell them the answer to the cryptex code. The Ex Air Force and Southie Boys (they're so cute with those Boston accents and tough guy appeal) are hot on the heels of The Geniuses. The treasure is worth millions.

I have to say, although I expected Air Force to be a strong contender and in the running for the treasure, neither the Southie Boys or the Geniuses were candidates in my mind. The Southie Boys at first were not confident in their brain power and seemed to stay in the game through the use of alliances, street smarts and pure brawn. The Geniuses were always arguing. Charles (the blonde guy) always shot down the correct answer, keeping themselves and the team Young Professionals at Mount Roosevelt (instead of Mount Rushmore) by discouraging them and telling them that if they go to Mount Rushmore and they're wrong, they'll be losing more time. He was DEAD WRONG so many times, but made others, especially in his team question their logic. They really didn't seem like a strong, tight-knit team--constantly bickering and often belittling the loveable but overweight Sam. In more recent episodes, you might have noticed Sam cracking the codes and figuring out the answers. Due to his asthma, he cannot push himself as hard on the physical challenges and would get reamed by Charles because he couldn't keep up...but here they are in the last leg of the game.

Team Air Force have dominated in every leg of the treasure hunt, always coming in first. It's no surprise they made it this far. They display that not only do they have the physical stuff down, they are also highly intelligent and due to their survival training and just in general, their training, they work exceptionally well as a team. The Southie Boys, on the other hand, waste a lot of time in the bickering department as well. The Southie Boys consist of two twin brothers and their best friend. In one of the recent episodes, they wasted so much time yelling at each other and saying they were going to beat each other up that they allowed another team to catch up to them. It was only through pure luck of guessing the combination of the outer cryptex that they were able to move on.

Who do I think will win it? Hmm...the Geniuses are in the correct room, but they still haven't figured it out and are wasting a lot of time. Sometimes they tend to overanalyze even a phrase like "It's right in front of you". Personally, I'd like the Southie Boys to win. Although they have demonstrated that they are smarter than they appear, I don't think they will get the treasure, but one is a fireman and millions of dollars would change his life, so I'm rooting for him. In actuality, I think Air Force is going to get it. They are smart, but remember not to oversimplify or overcomplicate clues and that has been the key to them getting this far. I don't know about you guys, but I can't wait until next season. I've gotten excited every Monday to see this game, and while it's a little predictable and hokey at times, it is fun to see the dynamics between teams, fun to laugh at The Wild Hanlons and fun to hate The Fogals (read my earlier post on 'We've Been Fogalled', a phrase coined by teams that got conned by them). It's been fun all the way through, you learn about American history (though some is a little stretched or fictionalized) and you start to care about these people and you enjoy trying to solve the puzzles at home.