Here are six runs, two per season, that I hold opinions of that differ from the "general consensus." I hope that these thoughts do not come across as rude, condescending, or dismissive of other opinions; that is NOT my intention. I hope that this can result in thoughtful conversation.
Keys to the Alhambra
This run was not particularly great, but I wouldn't say it's one of the worst of the show. Steve cleared his fifth room in just over 30 seconds, which is a pretty fantastic feat. Even though all of his objectives were "push an actuator," his speed is irrefutable. Lisa's performance in the temple was not stellar, but I would argue that she actually had some idea of what she was doing. She did try to use the Tomb of Ancient Kings key to open up the golden door leading to the Shrine of the Silver Monkey, but the door was already de-magnetized from when the temple guard took Steve from the temple. So although she tried the key, the door was already "opened." And not only was that door open; the temple guard door and the far-right door were cracked open too. This caused some confusion. Lisa did make an effort to go up to the Heart Room and then back toward the Keys to the Alhambra, but the Room of the Golden Idols was locked. She probably would have been granted access up to the Observatory, but who is to say that that route would have allowed her into the Golden Idols either? I believe that she would have been forced back into the Pit anyways, only to have to use the Tomb of Ancient Kings/Shrine ladder to continue on. Lisa was by far not the only Season 1 contestant to be turned around or blocked by malfunctioning doors, so I don't think it should be held against her any more than any other contestant. Overall, I don't particularly enjoy this run, but I would not call it one of the worst runs (and definitely not the worst run) of the show.
Moccasins of Geronimo
A lot of conversations have led to the idea that Mitchell was a "lucky" contestant. He may have walked through the temple, but the Season 1 temple was easy enough where that was permissible without being an absolute detriment to the team. Additionally, he was one of the few Season 1 contestants who was able to traverse the temple (with switching floors multiple times, nonetheless) without once getting turned around. Regardless of whether he intentionally opened the Treasure Room or it happened to open by chance, I think that his ability to continue on without hesitation is something that points to the fact that he was a good contestant. Overall, I think that Mitchell is a better contestant than many people give him credit for.
Applewood Amulet of Emiliano Zapata
This run tends to receive a lot of high marks, but I don't find it to be one of the best wins of the show. Robert and Olivia-Emma were a good team, but I don't think that their performance warrants as much praise as it seems to get. Together, the team cleared five rooms en route to the Applewood Amulet, the same number of rooms as the Ivory Hunting Horn and Jeweled Scabbard teams. Ivory Hunting Horn was a solo run, so the team didn't have to use time to have the second runner retrace the frontrunner's path, but even so, Yakerra cleared some of the most time-consuming rooms to score a very quick win. The Jeweled Scabbard team had to clear the difficult central shaft to reach their artifact and did so with 30 seconds to spare. Lacey and Asher were pretty average-paced and found their half-pendant. So why am I mentioning these two runs in relation to Applewood Amulet of Emiliano Zapata? Applewood Amulet is often held in higher regard, but when I look at the details of this run, I find that Robert and Olivia-Emma faced rooms of the same difficulty as the other two runs and kept roughly the same pace as the other two runs, but they did NOT find their half-pendant (which could have proven detrimental to their run) and escaped with 0:01 left on the clock. While the "nail biter" finish may elicit more excitement, the overall quality of the content of the run was worse in that the team did not face any more obstacles than the other teams mentioned, yet used up more time in the temple and failed to find the half-pendant. If Robert and Olivia-Emma had been given any other path to the Applewood Amulet (whether having to enter the Throne Room like in Levitating Dog Leash of Nostradamus or having to head down into the Mineshaft like in Mush Pot Hat of Johnny Appleseed), they would have failed to score a win. It was only because the team was given a very generous, straight-forward path to the artifact that they were able to succeed. Overall, I find this to be a decent win, but I would not go so far as to give it as much praise as it tends to receive.
Golden Pepperoni of Catherine de Medici
Simply put: Aqila was not a horrible contestant. She may have passed up the Pepperoni in the last seconds of the run, but aside from that she was a fine player. She followed up on Chris' path well and cleared the King's Storeroom and Shrine of the Silver Monkey in decent time (once she got passed being dazed by her temple guard encounter). If she had grabbed the Pepperoni in the final few seconds, most people would probably find this episode pretty forgettable, but Aqila would not receive any bit of a "bad wrap."
Dried Apple Half of William Tell
I don't find this run to be particularly special, but Brett and Lauren faced arguably the most treacherous path to ever be featured on the show. The only door into the Pit of the Pendulum was through the bottom door from the Ledges, and from there, the team was forced to climb to the King's Storeroom, go back down the central shaft, and then loop back around the whole inner temple. Travis and Elisa (Discarded Seal of Ivan the Terrible) were able to bypass the Ledges and the Secret Password in their run, and Keith and Rachel (Missing Portrait of Hans Holbein) were able to take the top door from the Ledges to the Pit, so their paths were ever-so-slightly more bearable. While Brett and Lauren did not make it that far into the temple, the fact that they were forced to make that huge climb in the Pit, go down the central shaft, and then traverse the whole inner temple makes me feel that they had the most difficult temple route in the show's history.
Lily-Crested Crown of Clovis I
I would argue that Katie was one of the least successful Season 3 frontrunners. She reached her sixth room with only 1:00 on the clock. Katie spent a very long time in the Chamber of the Sacred Markers. Not quite as long as Veronica (Bifocal Monocle of One-Eyed Jack) in the Pit of the Pendulum or Jason (Smashed Printing Plate of Frederick Douglass) in the Ancient Warriors, but a very substantial amount of time. The thing that irks me most about this fact is that no other contestant had any difficulty completing the Chamber of the Sacred Markers. At least Noelle had trouble knocking over the column and other contestants had some trouble getting out of the Pit of the Pendulum, and there were a number of times where a contestant passed by a headdress or lost time in the Ancient Warriors (Much-Heralded Helmet of Sir Gawain and Comet-Embroidered Battle Flag of William the Conqueror are the first two to come to mind, but they are by no means the only ones). Katie, on the other hand, was the sole player to struggle in the Chamber of the Sacred Markers. So why do the other contestants who spent a long time completing single rooms take so much heat, while she is let off easy? Overall, I am not a fan of the Lily-Crested Crown of Clovis I run.
Topic: Some Thoughts about Temple Runs (Read 27341 times)
