It's out there...somewhere. Who will be the first of ten teams to find the treasure? Tonight NBC airs an exciting two hour premiere of their newest reality show known as Treasure Hunters. Sit back, relax, and get ready to [strike]make[/strike] have fun.
Five teams will be starting the hunt aboard the USS Jefferson in the South Pacific. What they don't know is that five other teams are also beginning the journey in the frigid climate of Alaska. And in this show, it doesn't matter if you find it first. You have to be able to solve the clues to get you to the next one. On the hunt, our teams will have some help along the way from a handy bag of tricks. The bag contains a razor
(no, not for shaving of the legs Team Miss USA) phone, laptop computers linked to ASK.com and a Treasure Hunter Visa card
(now that's what I'm talking about).
On the USS Jefferson, teams are given a Morse Code message that they must solve to leave the ship.
(Hmm, in this day and age you'd think they could all just figure it out quickly.) All the teams are stumped... even Team Air Force. Everyone goes on a seach for some help. The Geniuses'
(9 majors and 1 master between them, well aren't they smart) find a code book first. The Grad Students say they are going to ride some coattails
(UNheard of in reality tv) of our superior brain team, at least until it comes to something physical. The Geniuses' break the code first and jump ship to an awaiting boat to take them on a dive in Hana Bay to find their next clue. The Grad Students follow.
At our starting point in Alaska, teams also recieve a Morse Code message. The Young Professionals act quickly and start seaching for a code book... under their mattress'. The Southie Boys find a code manuel first. The Wild Hanlons are stumped by the code because it's not the Looney Tune theme
(the mullet said it, not me. You just can't make this stuff up folks.) Ex-CIA team is good at gathering information and crack the code first. It looks like they will be headed to the Matanuska Glacier. Finally our first view of the beautiful Miss USA team. They are wondering around in seach while pretty much everyone else is working on their code. They comment that they know the other teams "think we're cute, but we'll save the manipulation for later."
(It may come in handy.) One Miss USA team member thinks Wild Hanlons mullet is awesome and wants to touch it. :O Ex-CIA team leaves for the glacier on a helicopter followed by the Southie Boys.
Back on the USS Jefferson, young daughter Fogal is hurling into a bag. Preacher Fogal is already broaching the topic of lying and tells that he'll just have to ask for forgivness later.
(There is so much I could say here, but I'll let you all fill in your own thoughts on this one.) The Brown family will be our last team out.
(It's been asked but I don't know about the physical exam for joining up for the show, but there couldn't have been a cardiac stress test involved.) Team member Keith just learned to swim three weeks before and now has to jump off the ship into the ocean. Thankfully, they have a life vest and goggles for the man. His brother jokes that he's going to be the only man to ever drown in the ocean while wearing a life vest.
(You gotta love a family that can joke in the face of death.)Back on Matanuska Glacier, Ex-CIA come in first, Southie Boys second, followed by the Young Professionals third. Once on the glacier, they receive a phone clue. Each team must follow a path of standing rocks known as cairns or inukshuk
(thanks, my smart Canadian friend) built/used by indigenous tribes. After following the path, they will then rappel to the site of their next clue. Ex-CIA rappel first and must swim through water at the base of the glacier to get to their next clue. It's a block of ice with Stillwater, Washington etched into the face. Inside the block is a map of Alaska with coordinates of where they will dig for their next clue. Once they figure out the coordinates they will go to the landing field and take the helicopter to their next destination. The Wild Hanlons and Miss USA teams are feeling a little winded and stop for a rest. Ex-CIA team decodes the message and come up with Lake George. They are first to leave followed by the Southie Boys and the Young Professionals. Miss USA get a little lead over the Wild Hanlons during the rappel. However, when Miss USA gets to the bottom of the glacier she decides that the block of ice will be too heavy to carry back up and starts chipping away to get the map out. The map now confuses the three and they can't figure out the clue. The Wild Hanlons figure out the Lake George clue and pass team Miss USA up. This puts the girls in fifth place off the glacier. Ex-CIA arrive at Lake George to find their next clue. They must dig under and around cairns to find out what's next. Ex-CIA, Southie Boys, and Young Professionals start their digging. Ex-CIA find their shiny "cylinder" that's engraved with the Greek and English alphabet. They will now take their new clue to the south entrance of the State Capitol in Lincoln, Nebraska. The teams are still in the same order (CIA, Southie's, and Young Pro's) as they travel out of Alaska. The Wild Hanlons find their cylinder and team Miss USA think that the game is over for them.
Back in the South Pacific our team Geniuses are the first to the dive site and are told to search the ocean floor for a steel box containing a pilot's log book for their next clue coordinates. The Grad Students are in the water second. Grad student gal is having trouble getting the steel box to the surface. Coming up on her is team Air Force. He (Air Force guy) grabs her find and starts to bring it to the surface. He get a pang of conscience and realizes she found that box and quickly gives it back to her and he heads to the ocean floor to find another. In a stupid move on the Grad Students part, she opens the steel box while still in the water and low and behold Preacher Fogal comes up and steals the pilot's log right out of her cluthches.
(First lying now stealing, tsk tsk Preacher Man.) Mama Fogal is extremely excited by her husband's actions and can't control her excitment back aboard the boat. :suspicious Somehow Air Force is second to the beach, followed by the Fogal's. The teams will be looking for a downed plane...the Monticello, where they will find their next clue. The Geniuses are first on the black sand beach with the Air Force coming up quickly. The Geniuses find that eating pizza and drinking brew for breakfast may not be the smartest thing as the team Air Force blows past them. And instead of following the Air Force team, who has noticed plane parts scattered along a path, the Geniuses take another path and get lost in the jungle. All you can hear at one point is Charles' young, still developing voice, yelling "Frances, Frances." :laugh Once at the crash site, teams will find a locked box that they must figure out how to open. The key is hidden inside a walking cane and they must figure out how to assemble said key to unlock box for their next clue. Air Force finds the clue first. In the false bottom of the box their is a map with a coded message on the back. They are then directed to head to the north entrance of the State Capitol in Lincoln, Nebraska. Grad Student's finally make it ashore with the Brown Family bringing up the rear. They have to leave the boat 300 yards from shore. "Big" Brown is completely drained of energy. As he lumbers off the boat, he is immediately swept by the ocean current towards the propeller . He has to be rescued by Treasure Hunter divers and is taken ashore.
(I guess being helped is not grounds for disqualification.) When they finally make it to shore the team sit around catching their breath. They start throwing around football analogies.. it's not over till it's over, we're just at halftime. Back at the wreckage, team Fogal has arrived. Daughter Fogal starts screaming that she has broken her thumb trying to uncover one of the lock boxes. She gets push aside by her parents who don't seem to care that she is in pain. Our Grad's arrive as the Fogal's find their map. The Grad gals ask the Fogal's for their key. They are quickly ignored. The Geniuses find their way to the wreckage and for some reason want to trade boxes with the Grad Students. When the girls start hunting for the key, our brain boys steal their box and quickly open it to find their next clue and destination. The Grad girls are miffed at being yet another team's target, but finally get the key and open their new box. The Brown family arrives and are very quick on the uptake with the cane and key puzzle. They get their clue and are last to head to Nebraska.
Back at Lake George, Alaska, team Miss USA has all but given up when our Wild Hanlon's find the clue. The ladies think it may be elimination time for them and yell, "Help Us." Being southern gentlmen, :) the Hanlons give the girls some positive talk and team Miss USA find their cylinder. The phone call from host Laird tells them that they are last, but they are not out... head to the south entrance of the State Capitol, Lincoln, Nebraska.
24 hours later... Lincoln, Nebraska: State Capitol
One set of five teams enters the north entrance, while the other five are on the south side. They are called and told to get to the west side where the Lincoln statue is located. It's a mad dash around the corner and then they come face to face. From the looks on their faces, they were totally clueless that they would have more competition for the prize money.
(Great suprise T.H.) The game has just gotten harder. They head downstairs to meet up with host Laird and he fills them in on what's up next. One team from Hawaii and one team from Alaska will board a bus together. They bus will head in the opposite direction of where they need to go. When the teams come together and use their clues (Map- Hawaii/ Cylinder- Alaska) to determine their destination, then and only then will our bus driver head in the right direction. To help them along they also need to think of
what they've found and
where they've been. However, to throw a little twist into the game, there are two possible places they can go. The bus driver cannont tell them if their destination is the correct one.
*Evil laugh here* When they get to the correct location they will find the first of seven artifacts. If their destination is wrong, they are on a wild goose chase. Here's how the teams are chose: The first teams to arrive from each location will be paired together and then second, so on and so forth.
Teams:
Ex-CIA Air Force
Southie Boys Fogal Family
Young Pro's Geniuses
Wild Hanlon's Grad Students
Miss USA Brown Family
All the teams show what they've found and start talking the situation out. The clues lead to Jefferson (USS Jefferson), George (Lake George), Lincoln (their last destination) and the cylinder and map lead to Roosevelt (Mt. Roosevelt). The Brown's quickly say Mt. Rushmore and team Miss USA don't think it could be that simple. However, when they say it to the bus driver the bus turns and last place teams move to the head of the pack. 18 minutes behind USA/Brown comes the Ex-CIA/Air Force team. 25 minutes behind first place is Fogal/Southie boys. On the Young Professional/Geniuses bus there's alot of arguing. The boys with the high IQ tell us that it's hard to "dumb themselves down, but sometimes you just have to..." They are sure they have the right clue when they decipher Mt. Roosevelt and that's the destination they tell their driver. Mr. Young Professional asks the driver if that's right and gets no response.
(I guess even a genius can make a silly mistake and not pay attention to the complete instructions.) This mistake could be costly for our professional/brainy team. Wild Hanlons/Grad. Students are the fourth to arrive at Mt. Rushmore, forty five minutes behind the leaders. Once at Rushmore the teams receive their phone clue. Mt. Rushmore holds many hidden chambers. Teams are on their own now and must take the President's trail. When they just see two (president's) they're close. History has a
"natural order" of things, but it also has a way of
"changing" itself. The teams will locate time capsules and must enter a numeric code. If they are correct with their combination the box will beep twice and they will be able to receive their first artifact. If it's one beep, try again. And to make things more interesting, there are ten teams and only nine artifacts to be found. That, my friends means our first elimination. Brown family is having a tough time getting up the trail and team Miss USA take the early lead. However, the "trail" is not that easy to find. Most teams take the marked trail and see only George and Abe's face... they're on the right track. As the Brown's are still huffin' and puffin' they are passed by the Ex-CIA and Air Force teams. The Young Pro's/Geniuses arrive at Mt. Roosevelt and don't realize they are the only bus there. They walk a path and find the same map and cylinder they have. The cylinder is atop the map and an anamorphic picture of Roosevelt appears from the map onto the cylinder. We are told that they've all had the answer all along. If they would turn the map there's Mt. Rushmore. As they stand around scratching their magnificent crania they try to reach some of the other teams via cell phone. The Young Pro's start back toward the bus, while our Geniuses decide to wander around and kill some more time. Young Pro's reach their pals the Wild Hanlon's. Young Hanlon tells that they are still searching around Rushmore and the Young Professionals say "Us too man... see ya in a sec." They call Mr. Smarties and tell them it's time to roll to the right location. They are thirty seven miles from the right location. Meanwhile, the Wild Hanlons have made the whole show while searching for their next clue. Papa Hanlon is huffin' and puffin' almost as much as the Browns. But this guy is determined to leave no stone unturned, literally. He picks up a trash can and finds a paper American Flag on the bottom... it must be a clue. As they head off the main trail, he starts overturning piles of tree limbs that look to be stacked purposely. The Southie's get to the boxes first, followed by Air Force, Ex-CIA, Fogal's, and Grad Students. Now to figure out the combination... Natural order, history changing itself. The combination is the president's order ( 1- 3 - 16 - 26), however it's not their "natural" order but the one we see on Rushmore (1- 3 - 26 - 16). Once the box is opened the teams will find another map inside. This will eventually help lead them to the treasure. Team Air Force is the first to figure out the combination with the help of Ask.com, followed second by the Southie Boys. Believe it or not team Miss USA comes in third, fourth is the Fogal family and fifth is team Ex-CIA. The Grad Student's come in sixth. At this point there are four teams left and only three maps to be found. Finally the Browns make it to the location. They are shaking around some empty boxes in hopes somebody left something for them. They break the code and are now the seventh team. The Wild Hanlon's find their way and start trying all kinds of crazy combinations. Papa Hanlon is pulling numbers out of the air. We see the Young Pro's and Geniuses have arrived and find out it's every team for themselves. The Geniuses arrive at the boxes first and they decide to ally themselves with the Wild Hanlon's. It's a spit and a shake. The Geniuses figure the combination quickly and the Hanlon's open their box just as quickly. But something goes terribly wrong for our smart guys. They said the code but can't get it to work. The Young Pro's have arrived by this time. The Geniuses are looking at the Hanlon's for some help and Papa Hanlon only gives them, "Well ya jus said it." :laugh It's a race between the two teams that took the wrong turn. The Geniuses will remain in the hunt while we must say a sad good bye to our Young Professionals. In a moment with the losing team the Geniuses tell them "they're sorry."
Word of the wise, stand up for yourself and what you believe... don't just follow the crowd because sometimes it can take you to the wrong location.Thanks for your time. I hope you all enjoyed the show as much as I did. Join us next week when the show returns at its regular day and time:
Monday's 9/8 Central.If you missed the two hour premiere, next week NBC will be showing an hour of highlights before the new episode will begin.
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