Though it still manages to bring in big audience numbers, CBS' decision to move The Amazing Race to Friday nights so it is no longer plagued with sports-related delays has worried some fans, as the timeslot the show was given is considered the death spot.

'Amazing Race' Moving To Friday Nights?

However, according to Rob Cesterino Has A Website, an Amazing Race blog, the timeslot doesn't have to spell death for the show, and if producers are willing to make a few improvements, the ratings hurdle the show is likely to face with the move will be easier to overcome.

The website wrote that while the show is still entertaining thanks to its original concept of watching teams complete tasks all over the world, some of the intrigue that made it so great in its earlier seasons has fallen away over time, and letting things be more like they were in the beginning could help the show regain some of the audience it may have lost in recent years.

Famous Landmarks Being Featured In New Season Of 'Amazing Race?'

Among the suggestions, the website includes:

1. Pit Stop Alterations: The show used to show teams interacting during the Pit Stop (mandatory 12-hour rest periods) on each leg of the race, but now the teams are sequestered away from one another while there. While keeping the teams apart can help increase the drama between ones that don't get along, the website says the show wasn't initially about fostering ill will, and even with interaction off the race course, a competitive spirit could still inspire television-worthy conflicts during the course of a leg.

2. Characterization Changes: Very little personal detail is revealed about teams these days, making it more difficult to get to know them. Instead, the show has focused on more gimmicky elements ("The Cowboys," "The Afghanimals," "The Country Singers") for their teams-and outside of professions, marital status and relationship with their partner, not much else is really known about who the audience is watching. Likewise, the website notes, the show has fallen into typecasting the last few seasons, not really giving the audience a lot of diversity on who they can expect to see. Often, the same kinds of teams race each season. The faces may change, but the way the teams are portrayed doesn't.

3. Challenge Changes: The website notes that while the show may go to some amazing locations and use exciting landmarks, the challenges teams face aren't really the best ones for where they are. Immersing the teams more into the culture of where they are could be significantly more entertaining and valuable, as they are likely to not have been exposed to several elements of daily life in this way.

If the show can make these kinds of improvements and re-energize the program, it may not suffer from the death stamp that often hits Friday night programming.


Tags: amazing race CBS Reality TV