I have a question for those of you who follow Big Brother on live feeds, live-feed recaps or Big Brother After Dark: Does the actual broadcast show hold any appeal for you at all?

I had looked up to see who won last week's head of household competition because I was curious. On Saturday, a friend of mine told me who had won the veto, and I had figured out the nominations.

So last night's live show? Totally boring. At long last, we saw that Kevin had won, but I had known that for days, and at the end of the show, we saw that Jeff and Michelle were on the block, but that was easy to find out, too. I already know who's going to win the veto, which just made the broadcast show seem like even more of a waste of time.

Those dedicated followers, do you even bother watching the CBS show?

I don't really know what to make of evictee Russell's declaration last night that he was playing the game as a character and just saw personal attacks as part of his game. I don't really get that, unless his goal was to be so horrible to make everyone want to bring them to the finals so they could win against him. The thing is, he wasn't hateable enough to achieve that.

And so he's gone.

The head of household competition wasn't over yet at the end of the episode, but I did a little digging to see who ended up winning.

So, (SPOILER ALERT) ...

...

it looks like Kevin won HOH. I'm really interested to see how that all plays out. He has alliances, but not really that much allegiance, you know?

It's time for Project Runway's second episode, and I'm hoping for some better fashion. Last week was a bit of a disappointment. We start with the designers getting ready in the a.m., talking about the shock of the first round: who went home, who were the 3 top designers, who were the three worst designers.

They head off to the runway, where host and judge Heidi Klum says they will be making an outfit for a mommy-to-be: Rebecca Romijn no longer Stamos. ("It's somebody else's 'Full House' now!" says viewing partner Pat. Ha!). The contestants need to design a maternity outfit for any type of event -- something Rebecca can wear to lunch, a party, etc. And she still wants to show off her shape a bit.

In the FIDM workroom, the designers have circular pillows to attached to their mannequins, so they can design appropriately. The models will wear these pillows, too. Consultant Tim Gunn comes in and says the pregnancy look must be form-fitting. They'll go to Mood to get fabric soon; it's now time to sketch. Logan then says pregnant women SCARE him? Is that really what he said? Or am I just tired? Wow.

The trip to Mood is a bit uneventful. Back in the room, the designers get to work. There's some hand-dying, ribbons and a look called "the mother hen." Hmm. The designers keep saying how hard it is to design for someone who is pregnant. Yes, designers. It's a big belly. Everyone is not always a size 0.

Mitchell is designing short shorts with a belly band. Yikes. I am worried for him yet again, even though he apparently has experience in making designs for pregnant women. He and others hold up his giant shorts and make fun of them.

The next day, everyone seems focused. Tim comes in to check out what the designers are working on. Malvin is making that "mother hen" bird outfit -- the top is feathers, the belly looks like an ivory egg, and the jodhpurs will look like ... chicken legs. Did he not learn anything from last week's space outfit? Cuckoo! (Totally stole that comment from Tim.)

And then ... Mitchell tells Ra'mon that his dress looks like a bowling ball. The models come in for their fittings. After they leave, we see Johnny's ugly jacket. Qristyl says Rebecca wouldn't dust with that jacket. It's like bits of funny this season. Bits.

It's runway day. The designers need to tweak their outfits (some have started calling the bump the "alien"). Malvin says he needs to make his dress a bit more literal. And he continues to freak me out. There's some banging on some leather, so, naturally, there's a reference to Stella working on her letha! Love it. 

Runway time! The guest judge is Monique Lhuillier (can you say Lindsay Lohan upgrade?). Louise, Mitchell, Althea, Malvin, Shirin, Ra'mon are among the best and the worst. Ra'mon says he created a cocktail dress. Monique says the construction is sloppy, and Heidi says the dress' patterns point to the baby. Which they totally do. Louise's red lingerie dress is a hit. Rebecca says she'd wear a dress like it on a date with her husband. The judges like its details and its tiers.

Louise's dress, despite the small coverage up top, its a hit. The judges like the jersey fabric and the tailoring. (I disagree on this one. I hate it.) Malvin explains his egg outfit. Judge Nina Garcia says the black organza with feathers is nice, but that the ivory makes it look like she's carrying her baby in a sling. The judges say Mitchell's model looks like a pregnant mess. The T-shirt is too tight; the shorts are not well-made. Shirin's red dress and jacket are cute -- Monique says she should get into the maternity business. The judges like the details, the waist line and the versatility. I think this was my favorite outfit.

"Later Mitchell!" says viewing partner Nancy. Is she right? Post-commerical break, we learn Shirin wins. And Malvin is out. Heidi tells Mitchell he just squeaked by, and he needs to up his game.

Next week, the contestants work in teams of two. Hopefully this will amp up the drama. And it looks like their might be a disqualification? Ooh!

 

 

 

 

I haven't been keeping up with America's Got Talent this season, but I just heard that Maryland musician Drew Stevyns made the Top 20 as a wild card. You can see his performance of The Fray's "How to Save a Life" here.

Have you been watching? What do you think?

Judge Piers Morgan said he thought that his performance this week was probably his best of his life and that while he might not have the best voice in the competition, he thinks Drew showed hunger and desire. Agree, disagree?

You can see more of Drew's performances from a couple of years ago on his YouTube account.

In keeping with Sarah’s short recap theme (editor's note: as in this one), here’s what happened on Hell’s Kitchen Tuesday night:

 

The men beat the women in a challenge where the two teams were tasked with making up a menu composed of ingredients that were determined with a roll of dice.

 

Continuing the gambling theme, the men’s team was rewarded with a trip to Las Vegas. Robert, who was released from the hospital after having medical issues last episode, rejoined his team just in time for dinner service, to the chagrin of his teammates.

 

Van repeatedly messed up on cooking fish despite being a professional fish cook. (He kept serving fish with the plastic wrapper still attached!)

 

The men’s team nominated Robert and Van for elimination. Chef Gordon Ramsay, in true form, saved Van and replaced him with Andy, who has basically been worthless all season long.

 

In the end, Ramsay sent home Robert. I think Andy should have been sent home. He hasn't done anything to wow me the entire season. It appears from next week's preview that Andy will get the boot.

 

Hi everybody -- Liz and Justine back for another week of "Top Chef: Las Vegas." This week brought the sibling rivalry story line between Maryland brothers Michael and Bryan to a head. They're milking this story line for as much as they can, even though it's only the second episode. But enough of the subtext; let's get to cooking!

To open the show, Baltimore chef Jesse gets first interview – this might not be good. Could it be foreshadowing? Remember, the judges didn't like her dry chicken last week. They're also showing Eve early. Whew. Maybe our prediction from last week will come true!

 

Enough with trying to read the producers' minds. On to the cooking!

(Photo of the judges, most notably Tom Colicchio in his shades, from bravotv.com)

Quickfire

Todd English is the guest judge. (Justine says he's cute and has TV personality hair. Liz concurs because she knows her mother would think the same thing.) He's conveniently positioned in front of a craps table in the kitchen (lest we forget, we're in Vegas, baby). Kevin the bearded wonder admits he has never gambled been this close to a craps table. He loses cool points with us yet again.
 
The catch to this quickfire is that cheftestants roll dice and must to use that number of ingredients (salt, pepper and oil were freebies, but not butter! Outrageous! Julia Childs is turning in her grave). Luckily no one rolled snake eyes (weighted dice?) and it was off to raid the pantry.

Unfortunately, Jesse had trouble in the kitchen again. She couldn't get a good sear on her scallops because she used a non-stick pan. She couldn't fix it with butter, since it would have added an extra ingredient to her tally.
 
Our token molecular gastronomist of the season (Liz dreams back to when Marcel and his foams were on the show) has emerged in brother Michael. His nitrous -chilled gazpacho earns rave reviews from the judges and he wins the quickfire and a another $15,000 from the swanky resort they're cooking at. (From the looks of things, this is going to be their normal quickfire prize, along with immunity. What happened to winning a signed cookbook from the guest chef?). His brother Bryan is dismayed at his loss. Cue the sibling rivalry music. (Justine wonders what that sounds like)

Sidenote: A commercial during the break offers a peek at how to make the recipe. Let me run out to Williams Sonoma and pick up a nitrous tank. Some recipes translate well for the home chef, but this is not one of them. Michael boasts the secret ingredient is "innovation." Lame.
 
Elimination

It's battle of the sexes as the cheftestants cook for co-bachelor and bachelorette parties. The bride and groom are particular about what they want: dishes paired with their three favorite shots -- the gingery Moscow Mule, a straight-up tequila and the sweet, gooey and disgusting Golden Delicious. The winning team gets immunity; a chef from the losing team gets the boot.

And we're off to Whole Foods!

 There are at least three ceviche dishes this round (two for the girls, one for the boys). That and gazpacho seem to be the trendy dishes this season. Alas, nothing with foam. (Unrelated: We don't see Jerkface Mike until more than 15 min. into the episode, a welcome surprise.)

Ashley decided to do two dishes. She wants to please the bachelor – he wants something sweet. Hasn't she watched other seasons of Top Chef -- doing too many dishes rarely goes well.

(Also, Bravo allows some politics into the episode because Ashley has a beef with the challenge : She's upset that they have to do a marriage-related challenge even though she says at least three of the chefs can't get married. Also, Preeti says she's been with her partner for 13 years – she looks 13!)

The judges head to the pool. Tom has some hott sunglasses. Padma's gorgeous as always, and Gail looks even paler in the sun. They try the girls' food first.

Bad news for Baltimore: Jesse had too many things and her dish doesn't make sense with the shot. Uh-oh. (But it looked pretty good.) Preeti's wasn't professionally done. Ashley over-stretched. One dish was good, but the other wasn't.

(Also, why couldn't Bravo spring for real shot glasses? The ones they show with the food glamour shots are plastic.)

For the boys, Jerkface Mike got bad reviews (Yess!)

The judges rave about both brothers' food. It could be a brothers head-to-head cook-off.

After the service, the boys jump in the pool. The girls are mature and have shots.

Judges' Table

(Did you catch Jesse giving Michael Phelps a shout-out in the stew-room for being a champion?)

Boys were the winning team. The brothers Bryan and Michael along with Eli and Hector were singled out for their excellent dishes. Michael knocked his dish out of the park. Bryan's meringue melted in the judges' mouths, and it was whimsical and fun. The win was between the two brothers, but Bryan redeemed his Quickfire performance with the win.

For the girls, Bad News for Baltimore Part 2. Jesse's food was bad, along with Eve, Preeti and Ashley. (For those keeping score, Jesse has been on the bottom for two elimination challenges.) Jesse's dish was too watery and didn't include ginger when it was trying to pair with a ginger shot. Eve's shrimp didn't have flavor and she didn't adjust -- Tom said that if she knew the shrimp didn't have enough flavor, she should've fixed it. Preeti felt like hers was a crowd-pleaser, but the judges said her tuna was almost too cured and the dish didn't come together. Ashley made two dishes, so one was great but the other flopped. (Top Chef lesson: If it's not successful, scrap it! Again, hasn't she watched other seasons?!)

Jesse again know what she did wrong, but the same thing happened last week. (Gail pointed out that she can't do this forever. C'mon, Jesse, you'd better redeem yourself next week!)

And the elimination goes to: Eve!

She wasn't enough of a character for any snide remarks. She just seemed sort of clueless. (Also, Justine loves shrimp and she cooked it poorly two weeks in a row. She's not catering her party.)

The predictions

Favorites: Liz is starting to like the brothers because Bravo is brainwashing us. She still likes Eli because his dish was popular with the judges. Justine likes Bryan because he seems sweeter than Michael, but he might not have the cojones to really crush the other contestants.

Who's going home next:Jesse has to redeem herself next week, Liz says -- you can use the "I knew what was wrong with my dish" excuse only so many times. If she doesn't, she could get the boot. Otherwise, Preeti doesn't seem like a strong enough cook, so Justine votes that she'll get cut.

(Did you notice Eve was our prediction! We're one for one!)

Who's going to get the ax next? Will the beards make a come-back?  Do you want to see another ceviche, or were foams better? Finally, does the sibling rivalry seem forced?

On last night's Big Brother, Jeff won the veto, removed Kevin from the block and replaced him with Russell. Hello, backdoor!

Jeff also acted like a total jerkface (I'm stealing that one from my awesome Top Chef guest bloggers), snapping at Jordan and messing with Michele during the veto competition. There was some surprise at my declaration on Sunday that I'm rooting for Kevin, but after seeing Jeff's actions last night, I'm even more in Kevin's corner. And Jordan's, too, though I wish she were playing a little more.

So Russell is probably out, right? Jeff has to make his move now because he is toast if Russell stays in the game. Any chance Natalie the pawn ends up leaving tomorrow? What do you think?

Is "X Factor" hopeful Danyl Johnson the next Susan Boyle? The 27-year-old schoolteacher from Reading, England, recently wowed judges on the British version of "American Idol" with his rendition of "A Little Help From My Friends" (it was more in the tradition of Joe Cocker's version than the Beatles').

He also performed today on the Today show (at left).

"I've been doing this for how many years?" Simon Cowell asked. "That was singlehandesly the best first audition I have ever heard."

Do you agree with Mr. Cowell? (I thought it was good, but not great. Then again, I am tone deaf. I also wasn't a huge fan of his "dancing.")

Check out Danyl's audition for yourself.

Photo courtesy of NBC

Jeff won head of household; Kevin almost did.

Kevin and Natalie scrambled to make a deal with Jeff and Jordan, but they ended up on the block.

But they might be pawns in a scheme to get Russell out.

Michelle was there, too.

I'm rooting for Kevin.

Ryan Jenkins, a reality-TV contestant whom police were seeking in connection with the murder of his onetime wife Jasmine Fiore, has been found dead.

Jenkins was competing for the chance to be in a relationship with Megan Hauserman, who has appeared on such reality shows as I Love Money, Rock of Love and Beauty and the Geek.

Fiore was found dead shortly after Jenkins reported her missing. Jenkins was found dead in a British Columbia hotel room, Vancouver police confirmed today.

Read the full (and sordid) story here.

"Project Runway" is in Los Angeles, and my TV is tuned to Lifetime. This seems just wrong. But it's time for the season premiere, and I'm ready for fashion (that I cannot afford). I apologize that I'm not going to recap the all-star challenge (former contestants came back to compete), I didn't know it was on. Reality TV watching failure.

The show looks just like it did on Bravo. Phew. First, we meet the cast. It includes a guy who says he didn't make the third and fourth seasons because he had a crystal-meth addition; a woman born in Yugoslavia; a woman who has designed for plus-size women; a guy known in New York City as the feather prince; a woman who makes "pixie-meets-cocktail-party" dresses; the single-named "Epperson," etc. Looks like some good personalities.

Once the designers meet one another, they head up to their loft's roof to meet with hosts Heidi Klum (love) and Tim Gunn (really love). The designers will work at the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising (FIDM) instead of New York's Parsons The New School of Design. It's where Lauren Conrad went to school, and Heidi Montag-now-Pratt dropped out of.

 

The cast heads to the red carpet at the Emmys. The first challenge is announced: To create a red-carpet look that displays innovation and reflects them as a designer. The look can range from Grammy-like (punky, a bit edgy) to Oscar glam (classy, long ballgown). The contestants head to the workroom, and Tim says the group will go shopping at Mood (same fabric-store chain as the one the show used in New York) after the designers sketch their ideas. One woman decides to instead do a handstand. Will she be this season's Elisa?

The designers chat as they make their garments. It's not that exciting. No drama yet. Johnny, 29, the former crystal-meth addict, already wants to throw in the towel. He's reached his limits, he says, and he starts crying. Tim comforts him and urges him to go on. Awww.

Tim comes around to critique the outfits. He thinks Ari's dress is going to look like a halter diaper. Hehe! The models then come in for their fitting. By the way, the models have their own reality show after this one; not sure I can rally and stay awake. But it should be interesting to see what they have to say. Mitchell complains that his model's measurements didn't match the card he was given with said measurements. At this point, it seems as if his model will be A) naked or B) going down the runway with her dress taped on.

It's the morning of the runway show, and people are stressing out. Especially aforementioned Mitchell. I think he's a potential goner. I'm pretty sure I could have made that disaster of a dress, and the only thing I've ever sewn is a button.

However, there are some other eyesores. Namely, Lindsay Lohan. Apparently, Lindsay, has her own line (6126 Lindsay Lohan), so she's the guest judge. Regular judges Nina Garcia and Michael Kors return. My favorite dresses are Gordana's, Christopher's (great textures, romantic!), and Ra'mon's (pretty shapes, looks expensive). Epperson's is nice, too. Least favorites are Logan's, Ari's and Mitchell's; Linsday scowls at Ari's space-suit design. And perhaps Tilda Swinton would wear Mitchell's?

The judges tell several designers they are safe; they leave the runway. The top three and bottom three remain. Top three: Christopher, Ra'mon, Jonathan. Bottom three: Qristyl, Ari, Mitchell. The winner? Christopher. Elegant, sharp and yet still has some bite to it, says Michael Kors.

It's one thing to aim outside of the box; it's another to miss it completely, Heidi says about Ari's dress. She tells Mitchell that his looked like a sheer nightdown, and that on Project Runway, there are no excuses. But Mitchell Ari is out. Ari Mitchell is in.

What did you think of the first episode? I have to admit, I was a bit underwhelmed. Hopefully the designers are just getting warmed up.

 

 

Megan Wants a Millionaire -- in which reality TV star Megan Hauserman was looking for love among some so-called millionaires -- has been pulled from the schedule by VH1 as one of the contestants is wanted for questioning in connection with a woman's death.

Hauserman lost on Rock of Love and I Love Money before being cast in this show.

Ryan Jenkins reported that his onetime wife Jasmine Fiore was missing, and shortly thereafter, police found her body. He is wanted for questioning, but he appears to have fled. 

VH1's statement on the decision to halt airings of the show is short and to the point. Read it here.

It was an action-packed live show tonight on Big Brother.

After a live, lengthy power of veto competition, Jordan won and decided to leave her nominees -- Lydia and Natalie -- on the block to fight it out.

Before that, the nominees and Kevin concocted a scheme in which they would tell Jeff that they heard Michelle and Russell talking about a final-two deal to try to turn them against Russell. (As it turned out, as angsty as Kevin was about the lie, M&R do seem to have that deal.)

Also, Natalie and Lydia finally had it out and realized that Jessie had been playing them against each other, which made them angry at him.

Now that Lydia is out and headed to the jury house, Jessie better watch out.

Just to mix things up, I hope Kevin wins head of household.

What did you think of the results?

I didn't end up following Top Chef Masters very carefully, though I did see some of a marathon earlier today.

In the end, Chef Rick Bayless brought home the win, but I felt like the most interesting part was seeing all the winners from the previous five seasons of regular old Top Chef dining together.

For those who followed more carefully, what did you think of the finale?

Howdy folks, Liz and Justine here. We're both business editors who appreciate good food (especially when others cook for us). We'll be here to offer our pedestrian insights and snarky comments about this season of Top Chef.

It's a whole new cast of 17 cheftestants, which makes it hard to keep up with everyone and learn their names. Luckily Bravo only kept up with a few, including Maryland's own brothers Michael and Bryan Voltaggio and Baltimore chef Jesse Sandlin. Even in the opening credits, their sibling rivalry came to a head, complete with cussing each other out in the kitchen. 

Other cheftestants have to make their mark by more creative means, including Mattin who is French and wears a jaunty scarf and Kevin with a huge beard. Hector has facial hair, too. This will be a beard-tastic season for sure. 

Enough about the fashion -- on to the cooking.

Quickfire

Top Chef delivered on the Vegas showgirls immediately, just like Liz said. A half-dozen appeared on screen for about 10 seconds, just in case you forgot you were in Sin City. (As a side note, did anyone else think judge Tom looked thinner? Liz thought it was the vertical stripe action, but Justine thought he might've lost a few pounds between seasons. Padma looked hot as always.)

The first quickfire challenge divided the chefs into teams of four by choosing poker chips from a bag. Let's see how long they will keep that gimmick up. With an odd number of chefs, Robin drew the gold chip, which gave her immunity and the option to sit out this challenge. It seems silly to not cook when you're on a cooking show, but we guess it's more about strategy this early in the game.

The challenge had them shucking 15 clams, peeling 30 prawns, cleaning 5 lobsters and cutting 2 prime rib chops. Early on, Mike (a "jerkface," as Justine refers to him) cast himself as the villain by saying he couldn't lose to a girl. Sadly, Mike's team did end up losing to Jen C., the girl he shucked against.  

This quickfire had a surprise second part where the winning group of four -- cooked against each other to win a $15,000 poker chip (again with the product placement). The catch was they had to cook the item they prepared in the mise en place portion of the challenge.

As much as Bravo built up the sibling rivalry between Michael and Bryan, they were able to put it aside because they weren't cooking against each other at that point in the competition.

Tom called Jesse's prawns and grits "a mouthful of ocean," but even the ocean can't beat the clam ceviche from Jennifer C., so she got the $15k chip.

Elimination challenge

The teammates turned rivals as each group of four had a winner and a loser to go to judge's table, where they'd face a tough critic in legendary chef Wolfgang Puck (who conveniently let them cook in his Vegas restaurant Cut). To reinforce the Vegas theme, the cheftestants had to introduce themselves through cuisine by representing one of their vices.

Off to Whole Foods! (How far away from the Las Vegas Strip did they have to drive to find a Whole Foods, we wonder.) A budget of $150 and 30 minutes to shop of course put these first-timers in a tizzy as they frantically scoured the store for their specialty ingredients, the oddest of which may have been Jennifer Z.'s seitan (a wheat gluten protein -- we had to Google it). Thank goodness they were at Whole Foods.

Many of the vices were boring and full of alcohol. The most creative jaunty red scarf Mattin's Buffalo rib-eye and zucchini with mashed potatoes who referenced his astrological sign but didn't clearly reference a vice. Robin finally decided to cook for the elimination challenge, citing her vice as being a "bad Jew" who enjoyed pork. One of the components of her dish didn't make to the plate, but her pork tenderloin with chorizo and bread pudding was still clever. 

The Maryland brothers, while on different teams, both got very good comments from the judges (Bryan, while Puck said he made "steak and baby food" because he put put pureed sauces on the plate, made a well-executed dish with the beef cooked and rested perfectly; Michael's rack of lamb with coconut sauce and gnocchi was "professional" though it was a little weird that his vice was Vegas' plastic surgery -- note the rack and coconut).

The Marylander who disappointed, Jesse, knew before the judges even said anything that her chicken had been a disappointment because the chicken breast was dry. The judges liked the flavor, though, so it seemed pretty clear that while she had the worst dish of her team, she wouldn't be eliminated.

The team that seemed to have the weakest dishes was Ash, Jen Z., Ron and Laurine. Jen Z.'s stuffed pepper didn't even look appetizing, and the judges weren't impressed with the flavor, either. She said she wanted to make a statement of being bold and taking risks by using seitan, she wanted the dish to represent her temper. "I'm mad as hell but good for you" -- the judges complained about the lack of spice. Gail (she's so cute!) said "there's no heat" and the rest of them nodded.

The dish Justine was most excited for, Laurine's bacon doughnuts with some sort of lambic beer and chocolate sauce, didn't get rave reviews. Puck actually threw a doughnut across the room to emphasize his argument that they weren't fluffy enough. They did love the sauce, though, and with Jen Z.'s terrible pepper, Laurine could've made chocolate-coated bacon and been safe.

 Judges' table

They called the winners in first, with Padma looking very stern, sad and official (as always). Ron, Jerkface Mike, Kevin and Jennifer were the winners of their respective teams, and Bearded Kevin took home the win for his Arctic char with turnip salsa verde -- Jerkface Mike looked equal parts mad and cocky. Wolfgang apparently is hard-up in this economy because he couldn't even cough up a signed cookbook for him. Cooking in Puck's restaurant will have to be prize enough.

The losers were Hector, Jen Z., Jesse and Eve. Hector deep-fried steak, which was not acceptable in the august culinary world of Vegas. Liz would've scarfed that bad boy down though. Jen Z.'s aforementioned chile relleno (the fancy way of saying stuffed pepper) was like a "vegan bar midnight special," Padma said. Tom said it would've been terrible no matter what protein she used. Jesse's chicken was too dry, but the judges like that she knew what was wrong. Bad execution's usually the kiss of death, but she was safe this time. Eve's food was bland and forgettable (overcooked shrimp, bland sauce made blander with cream -- she said usually cooks "big, bold flavors" and toned it down with the last-minute cream, but the judges didn't seem to believe her).

It was no surprise that Jen Z. went home. She even squeezed out some tears as she packed her knives (but did she really have time to unpack them in the first place?). She complained about the vendetta the world has against seitan, but Justine's happy not to have those peppers served to her.

The predictions: 

Early favorites: Justine likes Kevin because he's a winner and because Liz hates his beard (Shouldn't he have to wear a beard-net?), and Liz likes Eli because his “buttered" Scotch with scallops and beer cashews was all about being bitter.

Who's going home next: Eve -- she had a bland dish, bland personality and she got enough camera time for us to recognize her as the door hits her on the way out.

Preeti could also be going home next. She made the Top Chef fatal flaw of trying to do something she hadn't done before, and c'mon, you really shouldn't be on a cooking show if you can't even shuck a clam.

 Who do you think is going home? Does a chef with a beard make better food? Did anyone else totally ignore Top Chef: Masters?

Guest poster John-John Williams IV reports on a chance meeting with Top Chef: Las Vegas contestant Ron Duprat:

By the time I got to the private suite party in Tampa, all the food was gone. Folks were extremely jolly and looked like they were about to go into a food coma. Top Chef: Las Vegas contestant Ron Duprat looked on with pleasure.

 

(The new season premieres tonight -- right now -- on Bravo.)

 

It becomes immediately apparent that Duprat is personable, experienced, and composed. (Maybe it was his training in the coming season of Top Chef: Las Vegas where the contestants are required to make a meal without the use of a traditional kitchen. And before you ask, Duprat wouldn’t divulge any details.)

In the brief time that I was able to talk to Duprat, he told me although he is Haitian, he is trained in classical French cuisine.

Patrick Clark is Duprat’s most respected chef, he said.

 

The late African-American chef ran the famed Tavern on the Green. He was even rumored to have passed on the position of White House chef for then-President Bill Clinton.“If I can be a chef today, it’s because of Patrick Clark,” Duprat said.

 

When it came to talking about the show, Duprat was a little less chatty.

 

I got a firm no comment when asking Duprat how he did in the competition and how it felt to be double-teamed by Maryland brothers Bryan and Michael Voltaggio.

 

“That was silly,” he said of the decision allow the brothers to compete during the same season. “They are really good.”

 

The slew of folks I asked about Duprat's food gave rave reviews.

 

The menu is still making my mouth water: gigantic shrimp cocktail with a grilled pineapple cocktail sauce; fresh tomatillo salsa, and assorted miniature finger sandwiches (I heard the salmon mousse was particularly delish.)

 

With any luck, we’ll be able to get Duprat to come to Reality Check for a live chat. He already agreed to one once the show is over…

I've been food editor for a couple of months now and today, I finally got to combine that gig with Reality Check (which has been going strong for three and a half years): We did a centerpiece story on Jesse Sandlin, the Baltimore chef who is competing on Top Chef: Las Vegas.

There are also Q&As with Bryan and Michael Voltaggio, brothers and chefs from Frederick who are also competing this season.

You can also see a photo gallery of all the competitors.

Check it out! Are you looking forward to tonight's premiere? A couple of new guest recappers, Justine and Liz from Caption Call, will be covering it. Come back and read and comment after the show.

(Baltimore Sun photo/March 2008)

After a terrible performance in the last episode of Hell's Kitchen, Chef Gordon Ramsay gave Amanda a pep talk before letting the contestants go to sleep. She knew she was on the hot seat. Surprisingly, Amanda remained under the radar for the rest of the show. Ramsay had bigger fish to fry.

The contestants went back to their living spaces in different moods. The men were oh-so cocky. They were totally salivating over the possibility of crushing the women's team.

The women were a little defeated. Tennille was extremely angered by her teammate's decision to put her up for elimination in the last episode and had a bit of a chip on her shoulder that became apparent later in the episode.

The next day, Ramsay wanted the chefs to develop a three-course meal not to exceed 700 calories. The teams were given a slew of ingredients.

Sabrina, who works in a health club, took the lead for the women's team. The men's team struggled to meet the calorie count. At first their meal was well over 1,000 calories, but they wound up with 597 calories; the women were just under 700. After a quick taste-test by Ramsay, the women's team won in a landslide.

For punishment, the men's team was charged with prepping for the night's dinner service and buying all the evening's ingredients. The additional catch was that the men had to ride a six-person bicycle to the grocery store.

The women got to go to Venice Beach for a volleyball lesson from Olympian Annett Davis. They came back to their living quarters to discover huge gift bags.

When the men came back from the bicycle ride, Robert complained of being short of breath. He was taken to the hospital in an ambulance.

 

Robert is an extremely large man who left the show early last season because of health reasons. The men's team wound up competing without Robert because he was in the hospital.

The men struggled without him. Jim couldn't season risotto properly. (Was it a sign of things to come?)

Meanwhile, Tennille messed up cooking spinach. Ramsay got in her face and started yelling at her. Tennille lost it and told him that he was "crap." He told her to get out of the kitchen. As Tennille left the kitchen, she screamed a curse word at Ramsay, which caught the entire kitchen by surprise. Ramsay followed her out. The two had a screaming match. Tennille eventually backed down and returned to the kitchen.

Upon his return to the kitchen, Ramsay focused in on Jim, who still could not master risotto. It was so bad that Ramsay relieved him of his cooking duties.

The teams then struggled to cook fish and meat. Andy served uncooked halibut. Sabrina undercooked pork. But Andy continually messed up on cooking the halibut. Ramsay was so mad I thought he was going to burst.

Ramsay shut down the dinner service. He said both teams lost the service. As a result, both teams were tasked with offering up one contestant for elimination.

The women offered up Sabrina. The men offered up Andy.

Sabrina touted her ability to be a team player. Andy said that Ramsay made him nervous.

Ramsay ignored both of the teams and sent home Jim.

Ramsay said Jim didn't have any heart. He later said that Jim didn't have any passion.

What do you think about the decision?

 

The original winner of Survivor, Richard Hatch, was interviewed on the Today Show today about his experience in prison for tax evasion. Hours later, he ended up back in jail. You can view the video above and read a full story here.

Hatch claims among other things that he is being discriminated against because of his sexuality. He also says, re: the taxes:

“Whatever they assess, I’m going to pay. Whatever is owed, I will pay,” Hatch told Lauer. “I’ve to this day never had an assessment. There were other issues on those tax returns, as there would be on any American’s return, that people would question.”

Honestly, after all the buildup, I expected to see more drama leading up to Chima's removal from the Big Brother house for breaking the rules.

If you didn't see, she refused requests to put on her microphone, and then after her roommates brought it to her, she tossed it into the hot tub. After repeated requests to go to the Diary Room, executive producer Allison Grodner came over the loudspeaker to tell her to go to the Diary Room right then. Chima finally listened to that, and she was ushered immediately from the house.

But if her removal wasn't dramatic, the aftermath was.

Kevin lost it, I think wishing that she had listened to him when he was trying to protect her. Natalie started pontificating that it must be Michele's fault, that she drove her to that. Kevin and Lydia talked her down, kind of. "They took her HOH power away!" Natalie yelled. Lydia reminded her that it is a game and said that Chima had choices in the game, had the choice to follow the rules and chose not to. Good points, those.

Speaking of having people's HOH powers away, Michele's reign is ended, too, and there was a new HOH competition. 

At the golf-themed competition, Jordan won (after Jeff gave it to her), and Lydia, previously calm, went off the rails, calling Jordan a "ho," a "ho puppet" and other assorted nicknames, after which she claimed that what "you did" to Chima and the Jessie was wrong. Oh, please. After that, Lydia dumped out Michele's beer for no reason, while Michele taunted her about needing to wear her unitard (her "prize" from the competition).

Then there were lots of LOUD NOISES!

Once Lydia donned the Captain Unitard costume, it seemed to improve her spirits, oddly enough. At least until nominations, when Jordan put Natalie and Lydia on the block. 

Jordan interviewed that she wanted Natalie, who is actually trying to play the game, out, and Natalie interviewed that she wasn't going to give up easily.

So after all that, the episode ended in a rather typical way. What did you think about the episode?

 

 

 

Last night's Big Brother was a little nuts. First, Lydia and Natalie and Chima crying and carrying on about Jessie's eviction as if he had died instead of being sent to a house in some undisclosed, probably tropical location.

Kevin's diary room reactions to this won me over to his side, and with a vengeance.

Michele's nominations of Chima and Natalie were not that surprising, except that if she wanted to backdoor Chima, didn't she have to keep her off the block to keep her from winning POV? Oh, well.

Then at the end, the voiceover noted that on Tuesday, it would be revealed that one of the houseguests was going to be removed by producers. Of course, since that's all happened already on the live feeds, it obviously isn't going to be a secret for long.

So, if you don't want to know who it is ... stop reading now.

Perhaps not surprisingly, it's Chima Simone who got kicked off, though we don't yet know why.

What do you think about this move?

Tom DeLay? Really? Tom DeLay is going to be on Dancing With the Stars?

Yep.

So are:

-- Donny Osmond

-- Macy Gray

-- Kelly Osbourne

-- Debi Mazar

-- Mya

-- Melissa Joan Hart

-- Michael Irvin

-- Ashley Hamilton

-- Aaron Carter

-- Kathy Ireland

-- Natalie Coughlin

-- Louie Vito

-- Chuck Liddell

-- Mark Dacascos

-- Joanna Krupa

Some of these names mean nothing to me, but others sound like intriguing choices. I don't have a lot of time to ruminate, but please let me know what you think of the casting in the comments below. 

And if you're not sure who some of these folks are, refresh your memory with our photo gallery. And Caption Call has a pic of DeLay up for the daily caption contest. Go here to participate!

The Associated Press is reporting that reality TV maven Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth will be studying at United Theological Seminary starting Monday.

Great quote here: "Ivan Hicks, the school's associate dean for African-American studies, says ... Omarosa's reputation for both good and bad will help her as a minister, because people will relate to her."

Um, OK. My hope is the seminary will keep her busy -- and OFF MY TV.

Jon and Kate Gosselin were having an argument Thursday night when police were called, People.com reports.

There were no arrests or citations, and the disagreement was apparently over which babysitter Jon had made arrangements with during his time with the kids.

Read more at the link above.

I'm late on this (let's be frank -- I was watching the Ravens preseason game; mmmmm, football), but last night's Big Brother was pretty interesting.

Sure, there was all that scheming in play to backdoor Russell and the drama with Kevin not using the power of veto on Lydia. But none of it mattered because Jeff had the power of Coup d'Etat, and he used it.

Undoing Chima's HOH work, he took Lydia and Russell off the block, replacing them with Jessie (who ripped off his shirt to reveal a self-promotional T-shirt below) and Natalie.

The house voted 4-3 to evict Jessie, who looked disgusted, and then discussed with Julie that it was OK because he's going to be a sports superstar. God, he's insufferable. He was bitter last season because the vote by Dan (who had to vote what "America" told him, rather than what he wanted) sent him home. And then, poof, basically "America" had its way with him again and evicted him.

That's OK with me -- he wasn't likeable at all, and his game-play was annoying, too. Not to mention, he spent most of his time in the house, both seasons, sleeping. Whatever, I'm not going to get too upset with outside forces messing with the game.

That's what Big Brother is about, after all: the unexpected.

What did you think about last night?

Oh, one last thing, how sad was the complete lack of reaction for Michele's HOH win?

... let me point you in the direction of a couple of places that can.

-- All Top Chef, which has several bloggers from Baltimore, has been covering the season in a ton of detail.

-- Random Reality Thoughts, which is written by longtime Reality Check reader Rob, has also been covering the season.

Since I have failed you, check them out for your Top Chef fix!

But don't fret: The coming season of Top Chef: Las Vegas will be covered here. We've got all those Marylanders to keep track of!

Contrary to the TMZ report from earlier in the week, People.com reports that Lisa Wu Hartwell and her husband Ed were not evicted or foreclosed upon. They did downsize, though, and they did do a short sale for their house, which apparently caused some confusion.

You know how on Survivor, I always end up describing the challenges like, "And then there's a maze, and they have to get puzzle pieces, and then put together the puzzle and raise a flag"?

The equivalent in Big Brother is: "And then the contestants have to dress up in inane costumes."

Last night, for the veto competition, it was chicken costumes, and those participating had to slowly lift a dozen eggs, one at a time, up out of a coop, through the chicken wire. It required patience and some degree of strategy, and Kevin ended up with his first win of any kind.

But it turns out that he doesn't have much game -- he spotlighted himself as a floater when he declined to use the veto, even on his closest friend, Lydia.

Of course, none of this matters much since the Coup d'Etat is in play. We'll see how that goes tomorrow night. Won't it be a letdown if nothing happens?

John-John is back again with his report on last night's Hell's Kitchen:

A hero’s welcome for a soldier who recently completed a tour of duty in the Middle East turned disastrous for the women’s team during last night’s episode of Hell’s Kitchen.

Both teams were charged with developing a menu for a surprise dinner for the solider. The soldier’s wife met with a representative from each team — Robert and Suzanne — to better give them an idea of what to serve.

Suzanne completely sabotaged her team by ignoring the woman’s preferences.

Her menu decisions were way too bland. Robert, on the other hand, followed the woman’s wants, and as a result, the men’s team was declared the winner. The men's prize was the chance to ride in fighter jets, as well as having their menu used for the homecoming dinner. The women had to decorate the dining hall for the night’s meal as punishment.

Suzanne's team was so mad at her for ignoring the wife’s preferences and their suggestions when they were developing menu options.

 

Then when it came time for the meal preparation, the women complained that the men weren’t sharing recipes for the evening, which essentially, they said, sabotaged them.

The women were determined to win the dinner service, which they have not been able to do all season, but they continued their winless streak.

Tek was terrible on the meat station. She undercooked some steaks and burned others. Ramsay was incensed. It got so bad that Ramsay ordered her to a back room so that he could continue screaming at her.

The men’s team was rolling despite a less-than-stellar performance on the meat station by Jim. Ramsay eventually ordered the men’s team to take over all the women’s orders and complete their dinner service.

“That was crap,” Ramsay said to the women.

Ramsay tasked the women with choosing two for elimination. They chose Tek and Tennille. Ramsay was surprised by the choice of Tennille. She was extremely upset by the decision. She yelled out a couple four-letter words during the elimination ceremony to further make that point.

Ramsay agreed and sent her back into the line of safety. Ramsay called up Amanda, who undercooked lobster during the dinner service.

He told her that she looked like she was done. She sobbed, and sobbed, and said that she wanted to stay in the competition.

Ramsay sent home Tek, who maintained during her farewell confessional that she was a great cook. Blah, blah, blah …

John-John is back, this time with a report on last night's More to Love ...

Danielle, the 25-year-old receptionist from Baltimore on the FOX show “More To Love,” was eliminated last night. I can’t say that was a bad thing.

Danielle definitely made an impression -- she jumped in a pool with her dress on the first night. But she endlessly talked and talked and talked about herself. The self-proclaimed virgin annoyed everybody in the process. Basically, it was her time to go.

“More To Love” -- for those of you new to the show -- is basically a super sized version of “The Bachelor.” Everyone is plus-sized. I’m not being mean. I’m being honest: The show shoves that fact down your throat every possible second, regularly flashing the weight of the contestants, or their dress size, on the screen. Shots of the contestants eating are shown constantly. It’s actually quite condescending. But I’m getting off topic.

Last night’s episode featured a prom theme.

The show’s prized man-meat, Luke, took all of the contestants to a makeshift prom. Luke’s best friends from college — Chase and Sam — were tasked with interviewing the girls and selecting one as the night’s “Prom Queen.” Surprisingly, they chose Danielle, but I'm not exactly sure why. Neither of Luke’s friends ever really said why she stood out. The other contestants raised objections during their confessionals, saying that Danielle wasn’t really well liked in the house. (Ouch!)

Anywho, in addition to the “Prom Queen” title, Danielle earned a one-on-one date with Luke. She was very excited — admitting it was her “first” second date. (Almost every contestant laments the fact that she hasn’t had success in the dating world because of weight problems. It’s almost like that is a prerequisite to making the show.)

During the date, it became evident why Danielle has never had a second date. She talks about herself for what seems to be hours on end. At first Luke chalked it up to her being nervous. After a while, his patience ran thin. I knew it was over for her when he didn’t attempt to kiss her. (Luke’s a bit of a kissaholic.)

It came as no big surprise – except to the self-absorbed Danielle — that she was eliminated during the ring ceremony.

Earlier in the episode, Danielle said that she’s done some modeling and acting in the past. I hope that last night’s episode was her simply trying to showcase her acting abilities for a talent scout. She can do one heck of a monologue. Maybe she’s destined for a one-woman play.

With my apologies for its lateness (totally my fault), here is John-John Williams IV's recap of last week's Hell's Kitchen (with last night's coming soon):

The contestants have been bickering up a storm this season on Hell's Kitchen, and Chef Gordon Ramsay has taken notice.

Almost immediately, Ramsay split the teams into pairs. It appeared that he took extra effort to match feuding Tennille and Suzanne and Van and Andy. The challenge for the day was to make sausages. And of course the contestants made a slew of sexual references. Ramsay totally bought into it. He made a comment about the perfect size of a sausage is 6 inches. He also added that in this challenge “size matters.” (Oh Lord!)

 

Anywho, the women won the competition.

Ramsay called Robert and Jim’s performance “pathetic” for not completing one complete set of sausage.

As a reward, the women were treated to an Oktoberfest-like party. The men were punished with having to clean the entire living spaces.

Robert and Kevin came close to fighting when the competitive juices started flowing, but they eventually patched things up.

Just before dinner service, Dave was told that he needed to be put in a long arm cast for two weeks. The cast would not allow him to move his thumb, which made him cry.

Dave went to Ramsay to discuss his options. Dave said he would remain. He immediately went to the hospital to get his cast while the other contestants started dinner service.

This night, a slew of celebs including Tom Green, Drew Lachey, Kristy Swanson and John O’Hurley attended dinner. Jim was getting yelled at for being slow. He was redonkulously slow when he was making tableside appetizers.

John O’Hurley complained about his spaghetti being too salty. Tek, who made the salty dish, began to lose confidence, and it really affected her. Tennille helped her out and made a spaghetti that was more to O’Hurley’s liking.

Lovely did not season her food—at all. Sabrina stepped in and helped the entrees leave the kitchen despite Lovely’s lackluster effort.

Andy sent out cold meat. Robert started yelling at Andy to the point that the customers heard the yelling. Ramsay was none-too-pleased with the display in front of the customers (even though he screams at them all. the. time.). He let Robert know it. Lovely added to her already horrible performance when she didn’t know any of the orders. Ramsay yelled at her. (See?)

Dave arrived from the hospital and worked on desserts. He came just in time to give the men an additional push to put them neck and neck with the women. But Andy goofed again on meats. This time he served raw chicken.

Andy’s flub didn’t keep the men from winning. Lovely didn’t cook her vegetables in time, which caused the women’s team to lose.

Suzanne – in a surprise move – questioned Ramsay when he announced the men’s team won. She said she believed the women’s team was done first.

“Can I have a play-by-play?” she asked an annoyed Ramsay, who responded that she was disrespectful.

Ramsay said Sabrina was the best on the women’s team. He tasked her with picking the worst-performing competitors.

Sabrina chose Tek and Lovely to go home.

Tek told Ramsay that she is extremely passionate about food.

Ramsay said Lovely was “more laid back than an ironing board.” Ramsay said that both women were horrible during dinner service.

In true Hell’s Kitchen fashion, Ramsay pulled a last minute move and called Suzanne’s name. He asked her for her opinion of who should go home. She said Lovely. Ramsay agreed, and sent her home.

Ramsay later said that Lovely’s name should be “Useless.”

Ramsay told Tek to be careful. He called the next dinner service “the most important” they’ve ever been a part of.

What will Jon Gosselin's paramours probably not be dressing up as for Halloween?

This.

 

Tashica Morgan, a 29-year-old Bowie, Md., native, was featured on the most recent season of HGTV's Design Star, where contestants compete for a chance to star in their own HGTV design show. The show airs Sunday nights at 10 p.m., and this past Sunday, Morgan was cut in a controversial elimination.
 
The challenge for Design Star contestants was a first in the show's history, transforming a family's garage into another room. The designers split up into two teams, with Morgan on a team with Dan Vickery, Lonni Paul and Nathan Galui. After the challenge, there was a double elimination, where one person from each team was eliminated. Jany Lee was the other designer whose show was "cancelled."
 
While Lee's elimination followed protocol, the elimination of Morgan was another first in Design Star history. In past episodes, the designers were sent to a green room, while the judges deliberate who to eliminate. In Morgan's case, the judges cancelled her show without deliberating first. After whispering among themselves for a moment, the judges called over the show's host, Clive Pearse, to deliver the news. 
 
Features department intern Kayla Cross caught up with Morgan in a phone interview to discuss her elimination and overall experience on the show. ...

What did you think about the last two challenges?

I enjoyed [the individual challenge] the most obviously, because it was me, myself and I. Usually when you're designing, it’s usually your design as opposed to fighting for your design and I really felt comfortable in my skin doing that design. ... As far as the fourth challenge. I was OK with it. I thought it was pretty cool to do another challenge for a family and being in a group setting. I actually was excited because I was working with one of the finalists I’ve never worked with before, who was Nathan. So that was cool because it seemed that although my time after that was short, I’m glad I got a feel of everyone’s tastes and styles and work ethics before I got booted off the show.

What was going through your mind when you were eliminated?

First of all, I didn’t think it was going to happen the way it did. As it was happening, I felt cheated and pretty much slighted as a matter of how it was handled. ... There are some standards and procedures to any show and competition, and I thought that the manner that they handled this elimination, specifically on me, it wasn’t right. I didn’t have a good feeling. When it was happening, it seemed very staged, as if they were already planning this. [It was] as though they knew I was going to talk a hole in their head and while I was talking they were going to abruptly stop me in this rude manner and take the actions to another level. I really felt slighted. It wasn’t so much that I didn’t believe I shouldn’t have went home. It was a competition, everyone one by one has to go home, and it’ll eventually be one. But, I don’t have a problem leaving, it was just a matter of how I was dismissed. It was a matter of how they handled it, delivery is key to anything.

What did you think about their comments?

That’s nothing out of the normal, them asking "what did you do?" or "how do you think your design was heard?" ... I just felt that any of the challenges we have to prove what we did in the challenge. In my scenario, I just felt that it was harder to defend for the sake that I felt outnumbered by my teammates. It was a bad setup. I think people have been wanting me to go home from several challenges before. Because of that, it seemed as though ... no matter what I did, I could never do right. No matter what I said, no matter how I handled or acted. It was like, "I just want her out of here." It was more of a vendetta of an approach of some of the finalists. I guess that’s pretty much how the cookie crumbles.

Do you feel that Design Star portrayed you correctly on the show?

That’s a great question and I don’t think so. No, I do not think that Design Star portrayed me true to who I am. I think the only thing they portrayed right is that I’m very vocal, which is cool with me because I say out of my mouth is what comes out of my mouth and I stand by that. However, I’m not as sad or defeated or miserable or head hanging down low. It’s like the moment they got that image, they took it and ran with it. I mean, all I do is smile. I’m not trying to be funny, but I know myself. I’m high energy, I’m talkative, I’m always excited. I’m always ready to make a joke and laugh and play. I know that my true character still shone through the episode, but at the end of the day, the frowning and the constant weird angry faces, and frustrated faces, it really wasn’t me. I feel that the moment they got that response, they just ran with it. They never wanted to show me smiling. I’m too happy with life to be frowning, especially on TV. Hello? You’re on TV, it’s like the most happiest thing in the world. I feel that was the only way that they didn’t do me service.

Knowing that, and knowing the outcome of the show, would you have gone on the show if you had known that?

Absolutely. If you’re asking me if I would change anything, or regret, or turn back and do something different, no I wouldn’t. Everything happens for a reason. I’m a big believer that my path has already been set for me, and me going on that show just really made me a stronger person. It exposed me to things I like, as well as to things I didn’t like. At the end of the day, I would do it all over the same way. Honestly, I don’t think there is anything that can prepare you to do anything different because it’s something that’s like nothing else in the world.

What do you think you learned from this experience?

I think I learned to definitely very much stand my ground, and being firm in who I am and continuing to fight for what I believe in. Knowing that I am the ruler of my fate, and I direct my path, no one else does. Even though the judges were telling me that "I don’t see design" and "I don’t know why you’re on this show," they don’t dictate who I am as a designer. ... That’s what I learned. I understand that it just made me more sound in my profession and my passion to design. The fact that I was able to make it through, as opposed to being broken by it, really shows that this is where I’m supposed to be.

Did your experience on Design Star open any doors for you?

It did. It’s funny you ask. It’s not in the way I thought it would, although I did pray about it, as far as, "God use me on the show as touching or inspiring someone." That was my No. 1 reason behind going on the show, because I just feel like someone from my background, they don’t get those opportunities. ... I received a lot of emails and a lot of hits on my website just saying, "I come from the same background as you and you’ve really moved and inspired me." I mean people just pouring out their hearts and telling me how they want to take risks. That just touched me so much, and I was able to talk to them and minister to them and let them know to keep the faith, and keep going forward. You only have this opportunity once in a lifetime, and you don’t know what the end entails for you and no matter what, it’s going to be all right. It’s not the end of the world. ...

That was the door that opened with me. I was able to connect with people and people are looking to me and saying "Is it OK if I call you from time to time or email you," and "Can you be my mentor?" I’m just like wow, I’m beside myself because I don’t consider myself in the position personally as a mentoring person. ... I’m new in this industry, I’m new in this world myself. Yet, people look to me for that. I’m flattered and honored by it. That’s the main door that opened. Besides that business has been going on as usual. I was thinking I was going to get more business from this, and maybe I will, who knows? But, I’m still just as busy before as I am now.

What have you been doing since you left, with your design career?

Right now actually, I’m pausing because I’m installing a room for a client. It’s just been really busy. I haven’t really had any downtime. I haven’t cleaned my house as much as I like because I’m a pretty clean freak. So I woke up early this morning just to do laundry just so that I could feel sane in my household again. I’ve been so booked with work, just like before I left. I’m a workaholic. I design all day and all night, both at Ethan Allen and off the clock, for myself. I’ve just been doing my portfolio, and I’ve been doing my client’s house. That’s pretty much been occupying my time.

Then on the other end, I’ve been working on trying to get a couple things launched, including getting a mentorship program actually set up. Not for me to be the head mentor, but actually getting just a group together. Now that I have a position where I’m in where I can actually help others, I feel that this is a great opportunity.

Where did you plan to go from here?

Besides the whole continuing on with my designing, and mastering my craft. I’m heading back to school [Marymount University] in the fall, which is actually not in the fall, it’s in a couple weeks now. The time has gone by so fast. I’m a little nervous about going back to school. One, I’m nervous because of going back to campus. Leaving campus last semester, I must confess that people in the design program, they don’t look at HGTV as real design. I feel like I kind of was a traitor, so when I get back to school I’m interested to see how people respond. Not that I really care, but they are my peers and my professors. They’ve all said, "Oh, that stuff is not real." For me, since I left school, they were behind me but they were like "I hope you make it worth your while." So now I have to catch back up with school. Then of course, I’m getting ready to hopefully start a family with my husband so there’s a lot going on.

Overall, how do you feel about the show and the experience?

I want to be careful because I don’t want to say anything that I don’t really mean because it is definitely an emotional tie to my experience on this show. I feel sometimes that emotions can run wild. From my mind, from my sensibility, rationalizing the situation, I think the show, outside looking in now, is not all that I thought it was going to be. I definitely was expecting more. Not from the standpoint of me not being the design star because even if I was home I’d think that everyone just felt like it was supposed to be more of a positive experience. More of one of those dream-come-true moments, and it wasn’t that, unfortunately, it really wasn’t that.

It became more of just drama. I’m not into the drama. I didn’t go on the show for drama. I went on the show to design, and to prove myself. And it became more of creating a story like a soap opera and what’s going to happen this week? I’m like, viewers who watch the show aren’t watching for this, they really want to see the design. I hear the audience when I read these blogs and they’re like, "where are the designers?" I just feel so bad because they didn’t showcase our designing aspects, they really showcase how we were really throwing each other under the bus, and snarling at each other and rolling our eyes. I’m like, come on. Those five seconds where they kept showing people’s faces, they could’ve shown the details more of a room. Or shown how much work we actually did, cutting and painting and measuring. They didn’t show any of that. It was supposed to be more about design.

Unfortunately, I didn’t watch many shows in the past. I watched the first season, and I haven’t really watched since. I don’t know where this transpired from, but I do know that from when I first watched to now, it definitely has gone for the worse. I’m kind of upset in that matter, that I was a part of such an experience and a part of something like this. I wanted to be a part of something good, so hopefully some good will come from this including from the people who have emailed me and said that I directly touched them and inspired them, and motivated them. I mean, for what it’s worth that’s great news. But besides that, I talked to Lonni and I talked to NataLee and Nathan and Jason and we’ve all been just kind of like, "Aye ya ya," like what in the world have we signed up for? We’re all kind of flabbergasted and beside ourselves with the outcome of the show.

In your exit interview you mentioned that you felt like your voice wasn’t shown... ?

Yeah, yeah. My design voice, that is. I think that after the first challenge, my confidence was definitely a little bruised. It wasn’t like I was completely defeated and quit, but I knew I had to take a step back and re-evaluate how I wanted to go forward in this competition. With that, I decided I was going to be more of a team player as opposed to a boss lady, you know, fighting for this and competing that way. I have a competitive streak, but not in the manner of running over people and throwing people under the bus. I think what happened was I took such a back approach, I ended up not even really showing what I could do as a designer. So I do take fault for that, that was completely my responsibility and that’s where I think I did go wrong. I should’ve fought more for my design. ... I didn’t really fight for my design voice.

(Photo courtesy of HGTV)

John-John Williams IV catches us up on some reality TV news ...

The Real Housewives of Atlanta have been keeping fans entertained with their antics both onscreen and off-screen this season.

First, Kim is claiming that fan-favorite NeNe chocked her — twice!

Check out this story here, and listen to Kim’s 911 call here.

Second, Kim made news when TMZ posted a photo of her and her elusive, never-seen boyfriend “Big Poppa.” After seeing how short he is compared to her, I can’t help but laugh each time I hear his nickname. I’m thinking Papa Smurf would be more appropriate.

And last but not least, this story claims that Lisa might be having some financial issues.

It’s never a dull moment in Atlanta!

 

Hey, good call on starting a web site to elucidate some of the confusion about the health-care plan.

But didja have to steal my name?

So for those who might end up here because the confusion over site names:

What you will find at this Reality Check:

-- Reality TV discussion

-- Recaps of live results shows

-- Reality TV news

-- Reader commentary featuring heated discussion of shows, interspersed with fangirl and fanboy chatter

-- The occasional self-loathing moment from your blogger

What you won't:

-- Health-care reform information

-- Videos with scary floating heads of people caught in unflattering mid-word poses

-- Statements from the president

Now you know ... and knowing is half the battle.

(Photo by Associated Press)

This is how invested I am in Big Brother: I flat-out forgot to watch it on Thursday, I was so wrapped up in So You Think You Can Dance finale madness.

But hooray, Ronnie is gone! I feel like, even though I have watched all the broadcast shows, I must have missed something big between him and Michelle. His declaration that she was the worst person he had ever met was so over the top, and her goodbye speech to him so angry. Anyone watching the live feeds have more context for us?

And yes, Chima is HOH, and Russell and Lydia are nominated, but with Jeff having the Coup d'Etat (even if he doesn't know how to say it), it doesn't really matter. He could change everything at the last minute!

How weird was it on last night's episode when Jeremy Piven wandered in to promote his movie? That must have been seriously strange for the houseguests.

A number of commenters are reporting that when they tried to vote for Brandon after the finale of So You Think You Can Dance on Wednesday, that his line was closed as of 10:30 p.m. (It was, as we heard again and again, supposed to be open "for at least two hours after the show.")

Anyone else have this problem, and did anyone run across that in trying to vote for any of the rest of the Top 4?

Just curious.

 

It's finale night on So You Think You Can Dance, which, of course, means soon(ish) we'll know who the winner is.

The show opens with the Top 20 reprising the group dance to "Brand New Day," with more focus put on Kayla, Brandon, Evan and Jeanine. There will be more season highlights to come in this two-hour extravaganza.

Host Cat Deeley reveals that 21.6 million votes were cast last night. The judges' table is packed with choreographers: Lil C, Mia Michaels, Tyce DiOrio, Debbie Allen, Adam Shankman, Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythgoe.

The finale is two hours, so there is a lot of revisiting going on -- first of the whole season, then of last night's performances. 

 

 

 

 Each judge names a favorite performance, which we get to see again. First is Jeanine and Phillip's hip-hop number from the first Top 20 episode. (They get a standing ovation from Shane Sparks, among others.) Nigel's fave is Brandon and Janette's Argentine tango. I'm embarrassed that the first time they did this dance, I didn't recognize how awesome it was. 

Debbie Allen's favorite is Asuka and Viotlio's waltz by Louis van Amstel that told a story about Vitolio's struggles in his life. Mary Murphy's fave is Travis Wall's number with Jeanine and Jason. Good choice -- I get chills and tears. Mia Michaels' choice is Maks and Kayla's samba (another Louis number). It's good, and just makes me think, again, that Maks went home way too soon.

After that, the Top 4 get a surprise, meeting up with Kherington, who gives them a preview of Fame, which Kherington stars in. (How did I not know that?)

Debbie Allen's reprisal request is the Top 16 group dance to "Calle Ocho." (Oh, Janette, how we miss you!) 

An unexpected treat this evening is a performance by the So You Think You Can Dance: Australia winner Talia Fowler.

Lil C's choice is Caitlin and Jason's Bollywood routine. C talks a lot, and eventually they get to dance. I had forgotten how good -- and difficult -- this routine was. They are awesome.

At long last, it's time for some results. Cat announces the fourth-place finisher, and it is Kayla. That's pretty surprising. I didn't expect that she would win because she didn't seem to connect with the audience as well as some others, but I didn't expect fourth place. Kayla says that one of her favorite moments was working with Mia, and she says she's going to miss everyone. She's going to have a career after this, though, win or no win. It was pretty obvious that Evan wasn't going to be out, since he hadn't performed yet.

Adam picks another fave: Randi and Evan's "butt dance" by Mia. My mom hates that one, but I still think it was one of Evan's best dances. Jeanine and Brandon revisit their paso -- yep, the one from last night -- which is one of Mary's choices. It still rocks, even though we saw it only 24 hours ago.

Then, more results: Evan has still only performed once, so I think he's probably safe. But I am wrong because Evan is out. He is choked up talking about how thankful he is for the support of his fans and his family. He is so sweet.

Nigel says one of his favorite moments was when Mary admitted to using Botox. Ha! (She doesn't seem that amused.) In seriousness, he calls Mia Michaels' addiction routine with Kayla and Kupono one of the best moments of the season. This was also a good one, very powerful. 

Back by popular demand is the Rage Boyz Crew, the cutie kids who performed earlier this season. They are so adorable.

Tyce DiOrio requests Janette and Brandon's disco routine, you know the crazy-insane fast one? Yeah, that one. Still missing Janette in this Top 4.

Mia's request is Tyce's routine about breast cancer. Before Melissa and Ade perform, Tyce announces that his friend Michelle, whom he choreographed the dance for, learned today that she is cancer-free. More tears from me, and that's even before the dance. 

After that, the Top 8 perform the Broadway number to "One," with a guest appearance by the judges. They look SO happy on stage, it's very sweet.

And now, the last of the results. Will it be Brandon or Jeanine?

The winner is: Jeanine Mason! She really did peak at the right time.

"I never though I would be giving an acceptance speech at the Kodak," she says, "but I thank the Academy!" She also thanks her mom for pushing her through the part of her dancing career when she didn't like it for a bit. She actually gets to talk for a while, longer than I can remember a winner getting to talk in a while.

 

(Photo courtesy of Fox. I hope they weren't supposed to be in sync)

The Associated Press is reporting that negotiations are truly over between Fox and Paula Abdul:

[Fox Entertainment Chairman Peter] Rice told the Television Critics Association on Thursday that the network made an offer it considered very fair to Abdul, but she decided not to return as a judge on the hit singing contest.

And I guess that Posh report from last night isn't that outlandish: Victoria Beckham and Katy Perry have been confirmed as guest judges.

Please stop with the guest judges, Idol! Mentors have been great, but the guest judges have rarely added anything to the panel process.

Remember! At noon today, Reality Check will host a live chat about last night's So You Think You Can Dance finale and tonight's results. It's a chance for anyone out there to speak out about this season's performances, dances and judges. Make sure to head back to the blog today around 11:30 a.m., when you can begin submitting questions and comments, and tell us who be America's best dancer. Look forward to chatting with you!

According to The Sun (not us), Victoria Beckham is in talks to be a new judge on American Idol.

No one's on the record, and it sounds like a goofy rumor to me. Hoping it is because the last thing Idol needs is yet another judge. 

 

 

 

 

There are four dancers left tonight, the first part of the finale of So You Think You Can Dance. They have to dance in every permutation possible, do solos, perform a group dance and keep their cool as they do all this in front of a live audience of 3,000 people in the Kodak Theatre.

The judges' panel for the evening is head judge Nigel Lythgoe, Mary Murphy and guest judge Adam Shankman. I'm thrilled to see Adam, who is funny, gives good and helpful feedback and is way more coherent than Lil C. (Sorry, dude, but alliteration doesn't equal deep meaning.)

The first dance of the night is the aforementioned group dance. All four of them are working with Wade and Amanda Robson on a dance about jocks and cheerleaders that looks insanely fast. Well, it does in rehearsal anyway. The actual dance isn't quite what I expected. It's cute, but not the challenge or the memorable moment that a Wade dance usually entails.

 

 

 

 

 The first couple of the night is Evan and Jeanine, who are working with Sonya Tayeh on a routine about a man who is trying to keep his woman from leaving, but she fights back. It's ... interesting, but I want to be totally in love with every routine tonight. It's the finale! And so far, that's not happening. Adam thinks it was great, but he says they are a bunch of "nevers," as in, he never saw Jeanine coming and never saw Evan in the Top 4, and, "This season will never be the same without you." He adds that Sonya did such a great job because it was entertaining and she choreographed to their strengths. Mary Murphy liked the two of them together, but says Jeanine stood out a little bit more and that she's "emerging a little bit more each week." Nigel says this is an enormous stage, so they have to up their game, and they did. He also doesn't want to see Evan get thrown around the stage any more this evening.

The first soloist of the night, Brandon, talks with Cat about his experience. He says, among other things, that he wouldn't be where he is without the influence of Janette, and that his favorite routine is their tango. He also discusses his arc with Mia Michaels, who was so tough on him at first and finally admitted that he was good. His solo is reminiscent of last week's, with the intense music, power, strength. Adam appropriately calls it "take no prisoners," though he doesn't get the board shorts. He says it was maybe it was a bit frantic, but it's a competition, so that made sense. Mary says he gave her goosebumps, and he's athletic, dynamic and gravity-defying, and born to dance. Nigel says he agrees with Mia about Brandon: "He is amazing." He says his solo wiped out the opposition.

Kayla and Brandon team up for a Tyce DiOrio Broadway routine from All That Jazz. The routine is typical Tyce: big, theatrical, fun, tough. Adam says he always expected to see these two in the finale, and he loves seeing them together. He adds that there is nothing that Kayla can't do and that Brandon is an animal. Mary says they are terrific, rock stars, dance stars and front-runners since the beginning. Nigel says they just showed why they're in the Top 4 and showed their strength and their power. He adds that when he had his heart attack, a beautiful blonde girl didn't throw her leg over him, which is good, because he probably would have had another one. He closes by saying that he feels the show is finally beginning tonight. So I guess I'm not the only one who hadn't been blown away by the start of the show.

Jeanine sits down with Cat to talk about her history as a dancer. She's danced since she was 3 and hit a spot when she was really bad, but her mother pushed her to keep trying because she saw something in her. Her least favorite dance was Russian folk, and her favorite was Travis Wall's contemporary routine with Jason. She does a tango-themed solo (rose in mouth!) and the crowd goes INSANE, including the judges. Adam is struck especially by her series of pirouettes. He loves her, everything about her, and he says, "You just fought Brandon back." Mary says Jeanine has been a standout since day one and that she's peaking at the right time. Not to mention, she has elevated all of her partners. Nigel says her solo was brave and she totally pulled it off; "you're in the final two as far as I'm concerned." 

Laurieann Gibson is the choreographer for Brandon and Evan's pop-jazz routine. She says she wants to "push them to the place of new return." The dance, appropriately, tells the story of a battle. Hopefully Evan gets to fight back more in this routine than his first one. They dance to "Nasty" by Janet Jackson, and it is basically a dance battle -- especially at the end. They do a great job with it, but to me, Brandon outshines Evan a little because he just hits every move a little harder. But it's great entertainment. Adam thinks it was more than "a little," saying that Evan "got dusted." He says it was because he couldn't get rid of his natural sweetness, so it felt like a character. Mary asks Evan what the nastiest thing he's ever done, and his brothers cover their grandmothers' ears. Evan jokes the list is so long but gives up no answers (thankfully). Mary says Brandon hit everything harder and more sharply, but good luck to both of them. Nigel says the choreographers all say Evan has the best work ethic, but that he doesn't have a nasty bone is his body. "When you take Mr. Nice Guy and put him in 'Nasty Boys,' it doesn't sit comfortably." Yes, this is true. 

Kayla and Jeanine work with Mia Michaels on a routine about a journey that literally takes them across the entire floor and has them shedding layers. I don't really feel this routine -- it just seems too literal -- going from point A to point B and changing (aka losing layers, in this case skirts). But they dance it well, as far as I can tell. Jeanine does have trouble with two of her skirts not coming off like they are supposed to, which stinks for her because it's kind of distracting. Adam says it was like watching "the world's longest wardrobe malfunction." He liked that Mia brought in a risky concept piece into the finale and thought it was like watching two thoroghbreds. Mary says it was "a very relevant concept tonight." "You guys laid your heart and soul out there on the stage," she says. Nigel says he likes being able to see the competition dancing together, that it helps you figure out who you like more. He compares it to last season's Twitch and Joshua routine and adds (again) that Jeanine has peaked at the right time.

Evan then talks with Cat about his experience on the show. He tried out in 2008 (with way more hair) with not as much success and wasn't going to audition this year, but the head of his school's musical theater department told him he had to. His favorite dance was the butt dance, and the hardest part is being away from his family because they are so close. He also compares learning the news that he was making the Top 20 but his brother Ryan wasn't to "a dagger to the heart." Hopefully Ryan will have a better time this fall. Anyway, Evan dances his solo. He is typically charming and does more character than technique, at least compared to some of the other solos tonight. Adam says this was a riff on Evan's original audition, which was a calculated maneuver, kind of risky because people will either love or or thing, "Um, I've seen that." Mary says she liked it because Evan does his own thing and brought a new style to this show and given new energy to an old style. Nigel says he brings the "ahhhh" factor, but that he hasn't grown as much he would have liked to have seen this season. And while he liked it, he didn't think the solo was as strong as Brandon or Jeanine's.

Evan and Kayla are next, with a jive with Tony Meredith and Melanie LaPlatin. They feel like it's the fastest jive in the history of ever, but they're determined to get it. The routine, which is to Travis Tritt's "T.R.O.U.B.L.E.," is fast, fun and complex, and they're quite adorable performing it. Adam says he isn't sure that was a finale-level routine, that it should be "a bloodbath." But he thought it was a good showing by Evan, but he didn't feel like it made him want to pick up the phone. Mary disagrees and thinks the routine was incredible. She doesn't think the dancing was that great, though. She didn't think Evan had enough in his kicks and they both lacked some extension. Then she says Kayla stole the show. Nigel says they both "came out with guns blazing" and brought out a lot of personality. The crowd starts chanting "Evan," and he gets choked up. Nigel adds that Evan was there for Kayla every minute, and he says that Kayla finally showed a lot of personality. I think Evan probably helped with that, too.

Kayla then has her chat with Cat. She started dancing when she was 2 after she watched Singin' in the Rain with her family and declared that she wanted to do that. She likes her nickname from Debbie Allen, "White Lightning." Her favorite routine was the addiction performance because people really responded. When asked if she has what it takes to win, she says, "Of course! I'm not just a dancer, I'm also a performer, and I really reach out and pull people in. I always push and I never give up until I get what I want." This comes across as a little bratty to me, personally. She dances her solo to "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)," which will always, when related to this show, call to mind Sabra and Neil's amazing dance to this song. I'm not saying the solo isn't good, just that this song is kind of iconic for fans of the show, which gives her a lot to compete with. Adam says the solo was fine, but didn't really show who she really is, so he's going to focus on the season. "I know that this competition is for America's favorite dancer," but he thinks she just joined some of the best dancers ever who have been on this show. Mary says she is gifted and exquisite. Nigel says they have loved her since the beginning, which he thinks is maybe a disadvantage because they have been so vociferous about her. He's thrilled she is in the final four and up for the title because she deserves it.

Brandon and Jeanine work with Louis van Amstel on a fast, trick-filled, lift-filled paso doble routine. This is a routine full of power and intensity and footwork, completely entertaining and a good choice for the final dance of the night. (I am a little distracted by the lights, and have been throughout the show -- they are SO bright at times that it's hard to see what's happening on stage, and um, hey tech folks, that's kind of the point!) Anyway, totally fab. Adam says it's all about the transitions, and they both filled all the in-between moments in the entire performance. "You shredded tonight!" Mary screams. She says she is happy for Louis, too, because they are such good friends, and they did it so well. Then: Biiiiiiiiig Screeeeam. Nigel screams right back at Mary. He says the music and lighting had intensity, but they pulled off the dance just as well with as much intensity. He makes an inappropriate comment about how Brandon was coming out on the stage and he wanted "to do things to this woman, and I was right there with you, and I wanted to do things to her too." He claims he meant the dancing, but that's not how it came across. Anyway, he says these two have just barely edged the other two for him.

What a busy night! Cat puts them on the spot and asks the judges who they think is going to win. Adam says he can't call a win. Cat asks Mary if she can be "more of a man than Adam." Yeow. She says she can't. Nigel says Evan is a lovely chap, and that Kayla finally showed off her personality, but in saying that, he thinks the winner will probably be Brandon or Jeanine. 

What do you think? And don't forget! We're going to chat live -- right here -- at noon tomorrow (Thursday) all about this very issue. Please come talk! If I could bribe you with snacks, I would, but that could get complicated.

(Filmstrip photo montages courtesy of Fox)

You've had a few days to process the return of Jon & Kate Plus 8. The return of the show Monday captured less than half the audience of the season opener (4.1 million viewers Monday vs. 9.8 million viewers in May). We want to know whether you'll tune in again come next Monday. (Come on, don't you want to see whether Jon will wear yet another Ed Hardy T-shirt?) Take our poll and tell us!

Last night, American Idol judge Paula Abdul said on Twitter that she would not be returning to the show: "With sadness in my heart, I’ve decided not to return to #IDOL. I’ll miss nurturing all the new talent, but most of all being a part of a show that I helped from day1become an international phenomenon."

Immediately, some began to wonder whether this was just a maneuever to get Fox to work with her on her contract or something along those lines, but this morning, the network said in a statement that Abdul was "an important part of the 'American Idol' family over the last eight seasons and we are saddened that she has decided not to return to the show."

This is all coming a day after Fox announced that Kara DioGuardi would be returning as a judge, even though her addition to the show last season had been widely panned (including by me).

So is this a good move for the network? From the start of the show, Abdul became an easy punchline, with her sometimes bizarre sweeping statements about people's hearts or voices and sometimes-strange on-camera behavior.

But this season, with DioGuardi in the mix, Abdul's strengths became more clear. As she stated on Twitter, her goal was to nurture new talent, and her kind approach to the contestants was novel in comparison with the other judges, especially DioGuardi and Simon Cowell. She also seemed more focused this season (perhaps feeling threatened by DioGuardi's presence?) and backed up a lot of her critiques with specific comments about the contestants' vocal abilities or musical arrangements.

Two years ago, I wouldn't have believed I would be saying this, but I think Paula Abdul's departure from Idol is a huge mistake. This year, she stepped up as a more competent judge and really showed what she has brought to the show for its whole run. With her gone, judges' panel is going to turn into a festival of snark, and that's not really constructive -- for the singers or the audience.

I'm hoping this is just posturing over the contract negotiations, but I guess we'll see soon enough, since auditions for next season, which starts in January, are under way. (David Zurawik thinks it could go down that way, too.)

What do you think about this news?

More on Paula Abdul:

• Z on TV: It's not over yet
• Paula Abdul through the years photo gallery
• Weigh in on Paula's exit
  

Sun writer Sam Sessa interviewed American Idol runner-up Adam Lambert for this piece in today's paper.

Lambert and several of the other Idol contestants will perform at 1st Mariner Arena Wednesday as part of the American Idols Live tour.

Here are some bits and pieces from the interview that didn't make it into the article:

Adam, did you ever go back and watch clips of your "Idol" performances?

I actually bought them on iTunes so they were high quality. It was a really good learning tool -- to go back and review my performances. Performing on TV was definitely a new thing for me. I tried to learn as much as I could by reviewing those videos.

There's a rumor going around that Queen asked you to be their lead singer. Is that true?

It's pretty much a rumor. Basically what happened was, [Queen's guitarist] Brian May expressed an interest in possible future collaborations. That's really as vague as it was. The press decided to run with it. Of course, I'd be honored to sing with him any time. Queen is one of my all-time favorite bands, and Freddie Mercury was a huge influence on me musically.

Did you hear from any of the bands you covered on the show?

I heard in a roundabout way that the lead singer from Tears For Fears was really into what we did. I heard that Muse was happy with what I did. Ii'm also performing one of [Muse's] songs on the tour. That's pretty much it. I haven't heard from a lot of people. 

What do you think about Ju'Not Joyner's allegations that "Idol" was rigged?

I guess everybody's entitled to their opinion.

(Photo by Getty Images)

Hey guys ... don't forget to tune into the first part of the season finale of So You Think You Can Dance tomorrow night. At noon Thursday, we're going to try something new around here -- a live chat.

So store up those opinions on the Top 4's performances and who you think is going to win and come talk about it on Thursday!

The joke in my house (and probably lots of others) was that now, Jon & Kate Plus 8 should be called Jon OR Kate Plus 8. But a funny thing happened ... After the trainwreck of the beginning of the season, when the Gosselins' divorce was finally announced, tonight's two episodes seemed almost normal.

I think it's been pretty obvious of late that Jon is kind of off the grid lately, with his barely old enough to drink girlfriends and weird priorities. A lot of the folks who had been in his corner are starting to side with Kate (as several, including my former colleague Lisa Respers France, have noted).

So having two episodes that focused mostly on Kate and, especially, the kids was kind of refreshing. (TLC executives told David Zurawik that it was "relatable"; I was skeptical, but it actually wasn't that bad.)

There were still some unfortunate moments: one of the girls going on about how Daddy knows all about how to put up tents as Kate has trouble with the task, all the product placement of the camping equipment, the seeming insanity and waste of redoing a kitchen that looked lovely and serviceable to start with.

One telling quote came during the first episode of the night, when Kate was talking about how she avoided worrying about the mess going on with the kitchen renovation at home. She said that the things that seemed like the biggest worries turned out to not be that big of a deal when bigger issues arose. In some ways, this whole divorce situation seems to be mellowing her out a little.

I still can't really believe they are back on the air, and I desperately wish they'd stop filming and let all the kids deal with their parents' divorce off camera. But for these two episodes at least, the awkwardness level was a lot lower than I anticipated. 

I expected a lot worse, but I still think it must be difficult for the kids, especially the two older girls, to put on a happy face and pretend like everything is OK when the cameras around.

John-John Williams IV reports on last week's second-season premiere of Real Housewives of Atlanta:

"Who gone’ check me, boo?”

If you hear someone dropping this hilarious line in passing this year, know that they got it from a heated exchange between Real Housewives of Atlanta cast member Sheree and her event planner, Anthony. The two almost came to blows. He also yelled at her: “I eat [female dogs] like you everyday.” That can’t possibly be good for his business! (Check out the clip!)

What is it about NeNe, Sheree, Kim, Lisa, and now Kandi that has everyone from Anderson Cooper to the Today Show singing their praises? Could it be that the largely African-American cast brings a different look to Real Housewives franchise? Possibly. Could it be that these women are just plain old entertaining? Definitely.

Some highlights from last week include: new cast member Kandi — formerly of the R&B group Xscape -- struggles for her mother’s approval of her fiance who has six children of his own; Lisa decides to get pregnant, which is easier said than done when you're pushing 40; Kim visits a psychic who tells her that she will get pregnant soon, which horrifies her; Lisa and NeNe go to a red carpet birthday party, which gets them to gossiping about Kim, who has been talking trash about almost everyone; and Sheree and NeNe decide to patch things up after last season.

This season promises to be extra juicy and drama filled. Last season’s ultra-boring housewife DeShawn is gone. (Can’t say that I’m sad about that.) Now all that’s left is plenty of drama queens. In the previews for the rest of the season, we see clips that include: Sheree yanking on Kim’s hair; Kandi and NeNe getting into an argument; NeNe meeting a man who claims to be her father; and Kim pursing a singing career.

I can’t wait for the rest of the season. These women know the key to good Dynasty-like reality T.V. Alexis Carrington would be so proud!