A Million Ways to Lose a Million Dollars

'''The final three teams arrive in New York, the final destination of the race. In a cab driving, stair climbing showdown, two players have their final showdown, leading to a mad dash to Central Park where one squad finally vanquish their greatest foes (and someone's biggest problem); but still have one team to contend with. In the end, one team finally finishes and gets the million, while the other felt good they made it to the end regardless.'''

Plot
The teams must now fly to New York where they will find their next clue. All three teams believe that they have a good chance of winning the race due to having survived numerous challenges that were thrown at them. After their flight lands at the airport, teams must then compete in an All In which involves driving a taxi to the Empire State Building. Once there, teams must then climb 86 flights of stairs to reach the observation deck and collect their next tip attached to a suitcase. The surfers lose their lead after their taxi crashes into a pole due to another attempt by the ice dancers to sabotage their chances of winning leading to them taking the subway instead.

The ice dancers and cadets get stuck in a traffic jam stairs but the cadets impersonate a police siren which helps clear a way to the building for both teams. The surfers are the first to arrive at the Empire State Building where they manage to climb the stairs with ease and must now make their way to Central Park for the mid-point Chill Zone, where the last team to arrive may be eliminated but unluckily for them, Brody gets a leg cramp and eats a rotten banana in an attempt to gain potassium. The cadets arrive at the building but fall behind the other teams due to Sanders wanting to find a parking spot. This later leads to them losing their taxi to the ice dancers and having to confiscate another vehicle instead.

The surfers are the first to arrive at the mid-point Chill Zone and must now go to a boathouse and ride a boat to the middle of a pond to find a combination that will unlock their briefcase. The ice dancers get a flat tire and have their vehicle turned over by the police cadets resulting in them having to race on foot to the finish. Sanders and MacArthur arrive at the Chill Zone but their tip gets blown away by the wind into a drain. As the ice dancers arrive, Sanders uses her broken arm to grab the tip for the police cadets resulting in MacArthur having to carry her to the Chill Zone. The ice dancers are the last to arrive and get cut from the competition which leads to Josee throwing a temper tantrum. They believe that their tactics weren't worthy of winning the competition with Josee promising to be a better person, which is hard to believe for Jacques.

The final two teams use a map to make their way to the boathouse after the surfers end up going to the wrong one. After finding their combinations, the teams will find the directions to their final Chill Zone inside the briefcase where the first team to arrive will win one million dollars. Taylor admits that she's glad that she and her mom got cut from the competition before they had to do any of the disgusting challenges while the stepbrothers reveal that they're rooting for the police cadets to win due to their athletic skills. Both teams have trouble searching the buoys for a combination and MacArthur tries to flirt with Brody who seems to be more focused on winning, much to her anger.

The cadets are the first to find the correct combination but in their excitement, MacArthur accidentally creates a hole in the boat as it begins sinking but they manage to make their way to shore with the surfers not far behind. In the final race to the Chill Zone. The surfers are the first team to arrive and win the million dollars as they celebrate. MacArthur admits that while it is embarassing that they didn't win, the race helped her realize how competitive, strong and forgiving her partner was. The surfers are excited that they won the million and celebrate with the rest of the teams sans the ice dancers as Don signs off the show.

Cast

 * Carrie, Devin, Dwayne, Ellody, Emma, Jay, Jen, Junior, Kitty, Laurie, Leonard, Mary, Mickey, Miles, Noah, Owen, Ryan, Stephanie, Tammy, and Tom appeared, but didn't speak.
 * Anne Maria, Blaineley and Chris made a brief appearance but had no lines.
 * A man driving a car and a cart vendor spoke but it is unknown who voiced them.

General

 * This marks the first time in the franchise that a returning character(s) are in the final two.
 * Several Total Drama characters made a cameo:
 * Anne Maria is seen outside the Empire State Building.
 * Chris is seen reading a newspaper in the streets of New York City.
 * Blaineley is seen carrying boxes from an assumed shopping spree, although she is wearing a pink dress.
 * A wanted poster of Ezekiel can be seen in the background.
 * A graffiti of the skull on Duncan's shirt can be seen on the walls of a building.
 * DJ, Cody and Tyler's Camp TV design were occasionally seen throughout the episode as pedestrians.
 * The man in hawaiian shirt from The Aftermath: IV and a female intern from Greece's Pieces are both seen running away from Geoff and Brody's taxi.
 * The homeless man from Celebrity Manhunt's Total Drama Action Reunion Special who stole Ezekiel's wallet is seen sleeping on the subway next to the Surfer Dudes.
 * When the Police Cadets run after the Ice Dancers after having their taxi stolen, they pass by a woman who looks like the mother from Broadway, Baby! who had her baby carrier swapped.

Continuity

 * The Rob Ford look-alike is seen again in front of The Empire State Building.
 * Taylor mentions about the spa challenge from I Love Ridonc and Roll.
 * When Sanders drives wildly, she says she learned from the master, referencing MacArthur's reckless driving in earlier episodes.
 * Brody recalls the climbing of the CN Tower in Toronto during the first Either/Or in None Down, Eighteen to Go - Part 1, when he and Geoff climb the Empire State Building stairs.
 * MacArthur uses the same technique to hijack a hotdog van, which she did to commandeer the cab in Mediterranean Homesick Blues.
 * The old lady who Josee pushes into the fountain looks like the Travel Tip Giver from New Beijinging, though her attire has changed.
 * Laurie's face has recovered after being bitten by bullet ants, and this episode confirms that the joke that Don makes about The Vegans being crash landed to an island of cannibals being false.
 * Devin hasn't fully recovered from his injuries, as he is seen with his head still covered by bandages.
 * Dwayne no longer had the tattoo on his chin, suggesting he removed it or at least covered it up with makeup.