I had the pleasure of watching Episode 2 on Tuesday night, accompanied by fellow Season 1 finalist Chris Cerino and his family. We both had the privilege of competing in the NRA's inaugural National Defense Match at Camp Perry a couple of days before and it was great to be able to catch up on events since we last met at the Bianchi Cup earlier this year. As the video played, we both chuckled at some of the insider jokes and watched as outsiders as the narrative unfolded.

If you look carefully, you can often pick up on clues that clever editing and multiple camera angles might obscure. For example, during the team challenge when Jake made his charge up the length of the course to close the gap on the Red team. His failure to get a round off in the final bunker should have prompted a "Hmmm," moment. He is, as he tirelessly informs us an ex-SEAL, so you might think he would be both physically fit and familiar with the AK family of firearms. Turns out, he had a rifle malfunction that cost the Blue Team the win and sent Sarah to elimination.

During practice for the team challenge, the Blue team appeared to lack the cohesion demonstrated by their opponents and this was reinforced during the elimination process with no unified strategy emerging to deal with the loss. Sarah and Dustin found themselves at the friendly end of an M&P, receiving expert advice from Craig Sawyer, with Dustin showing a clear advantage skill with that particular pistol. The final tally in the elimination challenge seemed to bear this out; Sarah 11, Dustin 23. However, it would be interesting if the percentage of hits versus rounds fired was shown.

Looks like next week has ninja 3-gunner Taran Butler introducing a Benelli M4 loaded with slugs. Another hard-recoiling combination, so if Amanda or Sarah had made it through the first two episodes, they may well have found themselves facing another challenge where their physical stature placed them at a disadvantage.