Episode three has dropped, and I’m just not loving this season. A couple of the chefs are too seriously outclassed, and then the “Masters” have once again been allowed to invade “Last Chance Kitchen.”
The judges also feel less like interested mentors and more like reluctant curmudgeons. Did something change in their compensation packages?
And just personality-wise, I’m really quite ready to see the back of Mr. Bruce “I Know Everybody” Kalman. He is lazy, and perfectly willing to allow other contestants to do his work for him. Whut?!? And he has yet to make a single decision that convinces me he is any good at this.
I’m actually enjoying both this season and last chance kitchen quite a bit.
In particular, I think it’s genius to have old competitors come in through LCK. The problem with the first 2/3 of LCK is that, fun though it might be, we know none of the people in it have a chance at all, because they’re going to get smoked by the last few cooks eliminated before the finale.
This fights against that, and gives us some face time with some old favorites, without the issues we had last season where all the vets just crushed the newcomers.
Granted, it will be a bit anti-climactic if the winner of the entire season ends up being one of the returning vets, but I think the odds are very much against that, because, even against somewhat inferior competition, they basically need to cook perfectly a huge number of times in a row.
I also enjoy the mix of chefs. They just seem like a fun and talented group.
(And, by the way, Top Chef Junior, which is now about 3/4 of the way through the season, is WAY better than I thought it would be… largely because the cheftestants are WAY better than I thought they would be, both in terms of talent and in terms of being entertaining.)
Tonight’s quickfire (cooking for children using tiny-sized equipment) was one of the most entertaining in ages… without being so gimmicky that the food was irrelevant.
Wasn’t there a chef who got eliminated in the first couple of rounds, and then came back through LCK to win or at least cook in the finals? That’s what I thought LCK was supposed to be about: Giving a higher chance that the twists and turns that make the show fun wouldn’t wipe out the most talented chef accidentally.
The cheftestants are exhausted and morally defeated when they walk into LCK, and have to cook immediately against veterans who are tanned, rested and ready. It’s not a fair fight IMHO. It’s no longer a hedge against true talent being pushed out by chance.
Thanks so much for the reference to Jr! I hadn’t realized it was on, and I just love it!
I usually watch the next day on bravo’s website but when you click Top Chef, there is a giant LCK image on the page and spoils who is going home. Sigh. Not that I care much, although I do like this season more than the last few, but it is annoying. I can only watch it in Edge, which is not my normal browser, so I think if I leave the tab open on the right page it will open up on episodes and not spoil the entire episode.
I hate mustache Joe. There’s always one super punchable chef and he took the lead early and is leaving everyone in his dust.
She worked for the show (culinary producer) after season 1. She was responsible for setting up and stocking the Top Chef kitchen. She and her crew had to clean up after each challenge. I remember her blogging about the challenges of having the kitchen ready for the challenges. IIRC she left after season 4 or 5.
She wasn’t on the All Star season. Presumably because her former job might give an advantage.
That’s been quite a few years ago. I’m glad Lee Anne is getting a chance to compete again.
So far I like this season, it just seems like pretty much everyone gets along and is having a good time. Still plenty of skilled cooking but not too stuffy.