Sep/090
PR: The Models Never Know Best
Previously on Project Runway - The contestants were paired up to create a beachwear/surfer inspired outfit. This seemed too easy, and half way through the challenge they were told to make a second garment that takes the idea of their beachwear and make it avant garde. For the first time ever, the leader of the winning team, Mitchell, wasn't made the winner because Ra'mon did 95% of the work. Ra'mon won and Mitchell was out in a Project Runway first.
This week, Heidi tells the designers that Tim Gunn is waiting in the workroom with a group of women who know exactly what they want. The designers are fearful it may be bridezillas or teenagers who need prom dresses, but it ends up being their models. Tim explains that the models have been invited to a very important industry event. The designers must create garments based
on the wishes of their models while keeping their style infused into the outfit. Some girls are specific in their requests, but most are open to what the designers want. They also learn that this is their first one day challenge.
Irina gets a critique from Tim
With this kind of interaction, the bond between the models and designers is solidified. It doesn't look like there will be much model switching from here on in, but you never know what may come. Its this kind of challenge that can become tricky because there are so few limitations. Create a beautiful dress for a skinny model. The options are endless, which can be daunting. If you can't do well in this challenge, you should be worried about how you will perform in the more difficult tasks ahead. This is the designers chance to shine.
The outfits overall were pretty hot and most were remarkably suited to their particular models look while still retaining the designers essence. Let's take a look at the top three:
Althea Harper's design
Epperson's design
Carol Hannah's design
Althea's design won and I totally agreed. It was more than just a simple dress. She created a three piece power suit that was stylized and sexy. Considering the time constraint, its amazing that she was able to pull off creating three separate pieces. I was also really feeling Epperson's. It had a lot of intricate layers carefully placed on difficult stretch fabric. It was certainly attention getting and it matched his model's personality/look extremely well. I understood Carol Hannah's design, the juxtaposition of hard and soft, I just didn't particularly care for it. I think mayhaps it was the proportion that didn't aesthetically appeal to me. The judges liked it though and that's all that matters.
On to the losers...
designs by: Johnny Sakalis, Logan Neitzel, and Qristyl Frazier
All in all, these dresses weren't hideous, but compared to the others and in regards to the intended event, they failed. Johnny's was mostly boring and flat. I thought the only thing good about it was the color but that's not enough. Logan's design actually fit his model's vibe extremely well, but unfortunately her style is a bit 50's, a bit gothic, and a bit bright. He did a great job of creating the dress for her, it just wasn't very good. His lacework was lumpy and too thickly layered. Qristyl had started another dress but Tim referred to it as messy and I couldn't have agreed more. She started a new dress from scratch, but it was safe, boring and aged her model a few years. The simple black dress is not what you want to get noticed in a crowd. Qristyl got auf'd and that was that.
My picks had a particularly good week.
Althea won, Epperson was in the top three and Gordana floated in the middle as usual. I'm worried about her... she better step up her game.
Sep/090
Gleeful but Skeptical
Glee has been one of the most anticipated and talked about TV premieres of the fall season. Fox has put forth a mammoth of an advertising campaign in hopes of getting a cash cow on their hands. I think the network is trying to pinch off some of the teens that are obsessed with the Disney Channel shows like High School Musical, Hannah Montana and those Jonas Bros.
The show revolves around a glee club that was once the talk of the school... in the 90's that is. Nowadays, the cheer squad known as The Cheerios reigns supreme. A young, hip teacher takes over leadership of the glee club in hopes of returning it to its days of grandeur.
The core group of the glee club are amusing but at times border on stereotypes such as the solo obsessed girl, the fashion obsessed gay, the sassy black girl and the wheelchair kid. Did I mention the football player that needs to express himself? Yes, its all a touch campy, but it is a glee club after all.
The teacher, Mr. Schuester, is torn in two directions. He wants to teach high school and glee club while his wife wants to start a family, buy a brand new home and she wouldn't mind him starting a more profitable profession. Just as he is about to leave the high school behind, a guidance counselor helps him out by reminding him of what he once loved about the glee club and how important it was to him. Meanwhile, the Cheerio's coach is feeling threatened by another club trying to take any of the spotlight or school's budget.
The songs are mostly fitting. The writers have seemed to make it a point to show that these are not fantasy musical numbers. They are auditions, performances, rehearsals, etc. I'm afraid that they have written themselves into a corner with this plot device. Already, by the end of the second episode, a character asks to rehearse in the auditorium because she can't at home. Next thing you know, there are lighting cues, back up singers and the whole shebang. It seemed contrived, and I am concerned that as the show progresses it is going to get worse.
I am convinced that the break out star is going to be Jayma Mays who plays the dirt fearful guidance counselor Emma Pillsbury. Just look at her, she is cute as a button. Her character is in love with the married lead, Mr. Schuester and she is being pursued by the gym teacher. I find myself craving for her when she isn't on screen. I love her big eyes; they make me smile. My favorite moment of her so far is when she individually buffed each of her grapes before eating them. She has me glued to the show for sure.
I think its a safe bet that the show will be around for another season. Fox has invested a lot of money into it, it can't cost that much to produce with the lack of big names and Fox likes performance shows like American Idol. I can see them using Glee in conjunction with American Idol to foster their new talents even more.
Sep/090
Weeds’ Highs and Lows
Like smoking a good bowl, joint, bong or blunt, this season of weeds had its odd, freaky moments, its states of confusion and offered some moments of hilarity. I've complained before that this season has been all over the place. It totally has, but it appears they have reinvigorated the show once again. The finale aired last week and definitely set the show going in two very different directions. 
Nancy Botwin has left her drug dealing ways behind, but she wonders if her involvement had negatively impacted on her kids' lives. This has been a question pondered for weeks, but her new husband put her down because he thought his daughter was perfect because he sent her away to boarding school in Europe to make her a better person. It appeared that way until she was nearly gang raped while high on heroine and then was vomiting from withdrawals and half her body was numb. Nancy felt slightly vindicated that she was just as messed up as most teenagers. But in the final moments of the show, as Nancy was having an altercation with her husband's political advisor and supreme bitch, Shane comes out of nowhere and hits her with a croquet mallet. Her bleeding body was floating upside down in a pool as the closing credits began. I guess nobody's kids are perfect.
The second plot parallels the season one finale. 
Celia is now starting her own weed dealing business and amasses her team just as Nancy did at the end of the first season. This brings together the characters that were flopping around with nothing to do and brings the show back to its focus. I guess if Nancy isn't selling weed somebody has got to. While it is a reboot of sorts, it is completely different as well. I am excited by this a lot. I think this has potential to be hysterically awesome. But my poor Andy proposed to Alanis Morisette the abortion doctor and ends the season with an extreme protester pointing a crossbow at the happy couple as Andy runs away.
All in all, my enthusiasm is renewed, but at the same time I don't want this show to be an exciting first and last episode with an odd hazy middle ground. There are too many shows like that. Its cheap and annoying.
And on an awesome and unexpected note, my favorite song from my new favorite band was in the scene when Andy proposed. I didn't think a band named Starfucker would get any commercial gigs, but soon after this aired, I also heard the song in a commercial for Target. Go figure. Check out the song and its incredibly trippy video here:
Sep/090
Melrose Returns
Here it comes, the onslaught of new shows. I'm giving a shot to as many of them as I can. Here is one of the first to premiere of the new season: Melrose Place. If it is an indicator of what's to come this season... yikes. 
I felt my brain cells screaming with pain as they shriveled up. The good thing about the show is the format, which allows for people to come and go. They can add characters just as easily as they can make them move away. I hope after the pilot episode was tested they decide to add a few to the mix and maybe get rid of some as well. Right now, the majority of the characters seem either cliche or bizarre. From left to right we have a med student forced to pay her bills and ends up swallowing her pride and accepting cash for nookie from a guy she liked anyway, a chef and possible killer, the new bright eyed girl in town (played horribly by Ashlee Simpson-Wentz), Michael from the original show's son who happens to be an art thief (!!!!!), the blonde slut (The new Heather Locklear?), the aspiring filmmaker and his reluctant fiance. They felt the need to start the 
show off with a murder mystery involving one of the original show's craziest bitches, Sydney. I think she'll appear in future episodes in flashback segments, and I hope she does. She hasn't changed a bit. It's like they froze her in her apartment and just thawed her out again for the new show. I wish they hadn't killed her because she was ten times more interesting than any of the other denizens of Melrose Place. I give each show three episodes, so they have two more to make me interested, but I am not there so far. It doesn't have the pizazz the the original had. When it came out, it was so fresh and exciting. This new show feels generic and just a use of the format and recognizable name to pass off a sub par show. I also watched 90210 right before to see what was going on since I bailed halfway through last season. I should have stuck to my first instinct and never watched again. So dreadful.
If you want to give Melrose a shot, you can catch it Tuesdays at 9 on the CW.
