Creator of the Ultimatum Fantasy League Dani Wassel, and raconteur, writer and performer Amanda-Faye Jimenez join Karen and Nicole to process everything from "The Choice" to "Ultimatum Day." We discuss a range of topics from trial spouse criteria, to dommy mommy issues, to sexual loopholes and "good old fashioned tribadism." Happy 4th of July!
Surprise! TGR returns with 3 special bonus episodes on season 2 of THE ULTIMATUM: QUEER LOVE. Karen and Nicole gather queer experts, friends of the pod and Ultimatum enthusiasts to join them in astute, if also sometimes raw and raunchy assessments of the couplings, uncouplings and potential throuplings of Netflix's messiest queer dating show. This week: Greta La Fleur and Poulomi Saha join us to introduce all the couples, haircuts, trial spouses and more leading up to "The Choice."...
Join us for some intense and candid Elimination Station interviews with the final 4 teams, Josiah and Alyssa, Jonathan and Ana, Han and Holden and Jack and Carson. So much gaymazing processing, truth talking and big love! Follow our IG @gaymazingrace for updates on footage taken at the watch party :)
The Amazing Race reaches its breathtaking end, and we dive into all the Gaymazingness the final legs in Portugal and Miami have to offer. We’re left with a cliffhanger at the end of the penultimate episode, in which team ToH and the Soccersexuals compete for the last spot in the finale. In the finale, we see teams face their greatest fears while trying to achieve their greatest hopes. Have we reached peak Gaymazing from this most beloved reality franchise? What protocols of therapy and calling i...
This was a tough episode of The Amazing Race for the contestants and us. The teams joust head-to-head, which brings up a lot of masc issues with the str8 guys, before consuming eight varieties of French soft, semi soft and hard cheeses on an empty stomach, followed by running up the stairs of a cathedral. T eam Tragedy of Heterosexuality (Jonathan and Ana) are having a ROUGH leg, as Jonathan won’t stop berating Ana for her every move, even though (maybe because?) he was bested at the joust by Ca...
We’ve reached leg 9 of The Amazing Race, and all of the teams are excited by the old world charm and “verticality” of Napoli, Italy–and it’s the first time TAR has visited this destination. Mark is “gagged” to be there, and we learn more about his and Brett’s backstory as godpoppas and donors to their lesbian BFF neighbors in Las Vegas. J onathan and Ana have their best detour yet and work well together assembling a mandolin, while all the other teams fondle, plait and braid mozzarella. Carson h...
The Amazing Race continues in Sofia, Bulgaria, and we wonder: which TAR intern had to book the dungeon on Peer Space for the fire-walking Express Pass challenge? Nicole thinks this episode in the “A”-range for its gay score when all of our straight guy competitors take tremendous joy dancing in the water with circles of local men,, as the teams have to dive “Like a Prayer”-style to fetch an ornate cross out of the water. What About Bob (Han and Holden) switch affiliations in the middle of a Davi...
The Amazing Race teams face their first self-drive in Bulgaria, as well as another double U-turn. Our Gaymers end up lost beyond all hope, it seems, after struggling with navigation lagging nearly three hours behind everyone else. This leaves teams What About Bob (Han and Holden) and the Basic Bros (Nick and Mike) vulnerable to the U-turn, which is exactly what Erika and Melinda do to the boys. Ana endures more of Jonathan’s craptastic attitude, as he blames her for every little thing that goes ...
We’ve reached the halfway point of The Amazing Race, and the teams are in Dubai for some SATC2-coded adventures, along with two roadblocks, a fast forward and lots of diving. We learn that Han has a boyfriend (sad) after she says “YES, CHEF” during a tea challenge, but where the Lorde taketh, they also giveth, and we get a few Gaymazing moments (perhaps unintentionally) courtesy of Holden. Our Gaymers can no longer hide that they’re a threat, while Brett composes a song on the beach in Dubai. Tr...
Nicole and Karen get into the gayest episode of The Amazing Race this season, as Cirque du So Gay (Mark and Brett), and The Gaymers (Jack and Carson) both wind up on top–but who tops whom between them? Meanwhile, the tragedy of heterosexuality plays out as two of the remaining three straight couples face the dreaded double U-Turn. Karen, who is based in NY until the end of the season made her way to the Gaymers’ weekly watch party at Berry Park in Brooklyn, where she hung out and got some awesom...
The Amazing Race heads to Bali, and our special guest co-hosts Ricky & César, the winners of season 36, join Karen to process the first ever “Driver’s Seat” aka “Knee Deep in the Passenger Seat” challenge. Our Gaymers Carson and Jack bring multiple gaymazing moments in taxicabs and on their ATVs this episode. Meanwhile, Team Cirque du so Gay, Mark and Brett hustle hard while telling us about their skin care routine and the importance of Zen. Our last sapphic-coded duo, Team Cardigan (Bernie ...
Both Karen and Nicole are recording on the road after their own planes, trains and automobiles, so their Amazing Race recap is a little more “gestalt” than precise for S37, E4, as the teams travel to Kyoto on the bullet train. Ironically, both our sapphic fanfic team, Bernie and Carrigain and our actual sapphic team, Courney and Jasmin are in trouble on this leg after being confronted by a sporty challenge. Soccer opens our eyes to the bisexual potential of a couple of the other teams. While all...
The Amazing Race continues onto Osaka, Japan, and some of our gaymazing suspicions are confirmed, as we learn about the gamers (aka “gaymers”) cute back-story of coming out to each other as young gays who weren’t gay for each other. We’ve rechristened Carrigain with the sapphic Gaylor nickname, “Cardigan,” and Nicole has pointed out that Bernie’s tongue is pierced and looks good with her hoodie. M eanwhile, the teams drum, wrestle sumos and make mochi, while Karen insists on adding “making mochi...
What is bun-scrambling, and who’s good at it? And which daddy gets to be “a female” in an opera singing challenge in Hong Kong? Welcome back to the Gaymazing Race!!! Season 37 of The Amazing Race debuts with 14 teams, the most ever to compete on the first leg. This is owed to the introduction of a NEW challenge structure, the “Fork in the Road,” where teams are divided for the detour and the pit stop, effectively narrowing the competition to just 7 teams on each side. Who survives this cutthroat...
Once again, we were tantalized by the promise of a historic GALA (Gay and Lesbian Alliance) between Ricky & Cesar and Yvonne & Melissa, as the final five hit the Dominican Republic to water slide into natural grottoes, harvest cacao and play some D.R.-style “beisbol.” Sadly, Melissa is stumped by a rock-symbol challenge and Yvonne’s struggled to make a bottlecap fly with a broomstick.. With just a two-minute gap between 4th and last, our girls who like girls who like the Amazing Race end...
The Amazing Race gets busy in Barbados, Rihanna’s homeland. We admire their tiny jeeps and racquet sports skills, though the teams still struggle with navigation. There’s another tantalizing possibility of another all gay alliance at the fish pot detour. Leading up to it Team Walla Walla Mama & Son LOSE THEIR CREW, which sends them directly to our Elimination Station.
The Amazing Race teams head to Uruguay where Brokeback Fannypack is under the weather, and Sunny and Bizzy are looking forward to a “Girls night out, girls night in.” Parenting emerges as a leitmotif in this episode, and we see Walla Walla Momma and Son emerge from the pack to run their own race. Ricky and César and Yvo and Melissa–aka, THE GAYS–all take on a Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence-style Detour, and we are devastated (but also thrilled) to welcome our favorite Midwestern firefighter lad...
Friend of the pod Kat Spada from Feminist Frequency Radio sits in for Nicole this week, as The Amazing Race moves to Argentina for gaymazing challenges that involve recycling and meat puzzles. Can Ricky & César keep Shane and Juan, aka Brokeback Fannypack from overtaking their top position? The girls who like girls, Yvonne and Melissa, and the other girls who like wraparound sunglasses, Sunny and Bizzy, explore an alliance together as the other three boy/girl teams, Rod and “Chichi,” Walla W...
Sorry for the delay in getting this episode out! Nicole recorded this mere hours before her own amazing race to a meditation retreat, and our production assistant Corky (Karen's cat) kept pausing the recording to give notes. He's very picky.
Ajuan Mance, an artist, illustrator and author of many books and comics series joins us on our own megaleg, as The Amazing Race continues in Colombia. A rebus puzzle nearly derails our favorite lady firefighters, Sunny and Bizzy, who at this point are showing more enthusiasm for each other than the girls who like girls who like hiking. Ricky and César continue their gay excellence, while Vinny exercises his Pinoy patience with Amber as she struggles with self confidence. Things get artsy and ang...
Ricky & César remain strong as they cruise through the first Colombian leg of The Amazing Race, which involves cooking platters of meats, salty abuelas, and squeezing coffee bean baskets between one’s knees. Whither the girls who like girls, Yvonne and Melissa, who get nary an edit in this ep, as the firefighter sheroes prove why they’re shaping up to be a perfect fan fic duo, babe, for this year’s cast. The Encino Man twins, aka Floribama Shore, aka Anthony and Bailey join us for a cute eli...
Melissa, one of the girls who likes girls on The Amazing Race spawns the first lesbian catch phrase of the season. Nicole and KT take bets about whether or not she’s a Virgo or a Scorpio. This season continues to SERVE gaymazingness and intrigue, as Ricky and Cesar, and Yvonne and Melissa finish in the top 5. KT shares more insider gaycation info about Puerto Vallarta, and the bustling gay district of Zona Romantica, where this leg is run, and we say goodbye to our favorite Zaddy Chris and his d...
We are BACK, and both Karen and Nicole have a lot of annoying Puerto Vallarta expertise to share, as they marvel at this season’s gaymazing cast. Which butch daddy are both hosts enamored with in between their distracted chatter about The Traitors US, UK, Australia and New Zealand? And what do they make of this season’s LGBTQ+ abundance? Maya and Rohan, siblings and Amazing Race superfans from birth join us in this week’s elimination station....
It’s a nailbiter of a finale for season 35 of The Amazing Race, as the top three teams scramble throughout Seattle without coffee. The “grunge” challenge leads to some challenging understanding of tops, while “glass” requires everyone learn how to blow. “Grab” becomes someone’s Carrie Bradshaw moment, and we talk to all three finalists in our last mega-sized elimination station of the season.
The Amazing Race teams arrive in Dublin for the penultimate leg, and despite everyone having to Riverdance at the Gaiety theater, Karen and Nicole think this is among the straightest episodes yet. Corey falls in love with his pretty dance instructor, the lady Swayze to his Baby, while John from Team BLERD is lithe and light in his (heeled) dancing shoes. Beardback Mountain duke it out with Steve and Anna Leigh, aka Team “Daddy/Daughter Dance” for the last spot in the finals. Despite some initial...
Things get tense as the final 5 teams on The Amazing Race winnow down to 4 in Sweden’s Stockholm archipelago. Everyone skydives their way to Nordic bliss before the slimmest of margins separate all the teams. This week’s detour is decidedly a choice between a lesbian task–recycling–and a gay task: expediting a gourmet French menu. Nicole makes a case for reimagining team Beardback Mountain as “pansexual,” while Karen bonds with our elimination station guests, Todd and Ashlie who are also from th...
After a long prelude in which Nicole and Karen discuss the new Todd Haynes film, May December, with some notes on which Amazing Race contestants they would cast in the lead roles, they get into how painfully straight the show has become. Slovenia feels very “Covid lockdown” season to our team, despite all the hype. Karen talks a little too much about caves, and Nicole thinks the greeters at the end of this leg are lesbian nuns. We are of course devastated that our brash fanfiction team is KNOCKE...
The Amazing Race visits Llubjana, Slovenia for the first time ever in its history, and Karen tells us about how Llubjana became a gaycation destination in the late aughts and early-2010s. Nicole softens to Steve, the daddy of team Daddy/Daughter dance, especially after Anna Leigh makes him run up a long ski lift for an express pass that was already claimed. Despite the gayness of Llubjana, we were hard-pressed to find gaymazing content beyond the detour where the judges of both sides offered the...
The Amazing Racers take a 15 hour flight from Jaipur to Frankfurt where the season’s first self-driving leg awaits them. As they make their way along the Rhine, we find out who can’t find the right ferry. Are all the teams secretly laughing at the German word “Fährt”? Karen declares she would “slay in Köln,” one of her favorite cities in the world, and a place she knows well. Nicole feels like the wayward teams have captured her true TAR spirit. Plus, experience the Kölner carnival challenge tha...
