When Whitney talked about getting a "distorted perception of reality" from the models' living situation, I couldn't help but think the CW was foreshadowing. Sure enough, I can't imagine that tonight's plot points are a realistic representation of the world of supermodeling: Russian mail-order bride channels rapper; two full-figured gals must battle
each other to be the remaining token plus-size among a bevy of beanpoles; and all the ladies pose as dudes, paired with dudes dressed in drag. It was more like "America's Next Soap Opera."
First off, we're privy to some Natasha gossip (wait, she has a
baby with this 43-year-old?) and her laugh-out-loud attempt at sexy banter over the phone line, complete with purrs and meows. Natasha continues to reinterpret criticism with that perky, plastic smile. But at least she's
studying poses in magazines and practicing facial expressions. Evidently she's actually retaining something and following the judges' advice, which is more than can be said for many of them.
In the Sears/"Zarian-squared" challenge, Renee for once had a valid reason to be peeved, though not as much as Dionne, when they both picked out Sarah's winning ensemble. Natasha was her "used-car salesman" self (thanks, Sarah, for that awesome line!), spinning her (mis)spelling of "Aphrodity's Box," a horrible team name on so many levels. If Natasha talks as much as everyone claims she does, I'm not surprised Whitney didn't listen to her, but it's Whitney's own fault for not following directions and losing what could have been a double win for her and her team.
Even though the elimination challenge involved the fem beauties dressing and posing as blokes, several were given personas to type. I mean, naturally, Miss Drag Queen herself, Jaslene, "commanded that set," as Jay described her poses as a "nautical" (?) fellow. Also advantageous was Brittany's assignment. No, she's not especially a nature girl, but it's a good thing she was able to hide that big red bouffant weave under an "outdoorsy" hat while she learns (we hope) how to style it. And thank god Renee did not complain about what she got, because with her pale, überfem and fragile face, a glam-rock setup à la Ziggy Stardust was
perfect for her. Jael didn't have to stretch much either - the "bohemian" spiritual hippy-dippy shoot was an ideal match for her cosmic persona. It allowed her "soul to be captured," to use her own words, though the judges would later beg to disagree. When Dionne's power-couple poses weren't working, I thought back to last week's bottom two and started missing Felicia.
So then how did Dionne pull out such a good photo and, since the judges brought up Jay's notes several times during their debate, did he not say that her shoot was horrible? Or did they just ignore that because she managed a single decent image?
To her credit, Natasha practiced and
became her hip-hop incarnation of a scrawny, pasty rapper wannabe, and even blinged out her grill with some gum-wrapper foil. She doesn't know what "teacher's pet" means, but K-Fed translates into any language.
I agreed with Tyra (whoa) in that I was surprised the guttural, tomboyish Jael couldn't exude more androgyny - then again, that voice can't be captured on paper. Plus, didn't it seem from the clips we saw that her shoot went well? Or am I making that up? Regardless, the Elite Model Management guest judge so detested Jael that I suspect she won't survive the competition much longer.
Predictably, Natasha's name was called first; the plus-sizes made the bottom two. Judging inconsistencies continue: Jay told them Whitney's was the day's worst shoot, yet Diana was ousted. But I guess this was a week in which "passion" trumped talent. Expect the opposite in the next episode.
show less
When Whitney talked about getting a "distorted perception of reality" from the models' living situation, I couldn't help but think the CW was foreshadowing. Sure enough, I can't imagine that tonight's plot points are a realistic representation of the world of supermodeling: Russian mail-order bride channels rapper; two full-figured gals must battle each other to be the remaining token plus-size among a bevy of beanpoles; and all the ladies pose as dudes, paired with dudes… dressed in drag. It was more like "America's Next Soap Opera." First off, we're privy to some Natasha gossip (wait, she has a baby with this 43-year-old?) and her laugh-out-loud attempt at sexy banter over the phone line, complete with purrs and meows. Natasha continues to reinterpret criticism with that perky, plastic smile. But at least she's studying poses in magazines and practicing facial expressions. Evidently she's actually retaining something and following the judges' advice, which is more than can be...
read more