Top Chef

[Deleted]

shopper1 said:

I don't know what kind of a culture he comes from, but I do know that if this were a real-life situation Frank would be most definitely be fired for that, and possibly arrested for it as well. The guy is an adult, and what's more, he mentioned that he's a father...it really, really makes me worry about his daughter. Between this and his I'll-break-your-kneecaps speech in the commercials, Frank is really presenting himself as a violent individual.

I agree with you. I thought his "I will beat you so bad that your mother won't recognize you" speech was totally uncalled for - was he drinking? It seems that he always has a drink or a bottle in his hand. He comes across as a bully and I cannot wait for him to get booted.

Don't like Frank either and thought his crazy rant about his freakin' toothbrush being "on the floor" was totally ridiculous. Poor Marcel–who I don't mind at all (except for his constant use of "foam") and refuse to believe is this year's equivelent of last year's Steven—did say that he thought the toothbrush was in the bag, not the floor and got completely dismissed by ragin' Frank. And even if the thing were on the floor–should it really incite a grown man to violence? God. It's a toothbrush—and it was already in a place (the kitchen) where it shouldn't be.

I still forget the name of the stoner-like dude, but I really, really like him. He will never win, but he amuses me when he's on screen.

[scarlet]

littleediebeale said:

I still forget the name of the stoner-like dude, but I really, really like him. He will never win, but he amuses me when he's on screen.

Michael. He's a riot! He seems to have zero chance of winning, but he sure is entertaining.

All in all, almost everyone annoyed me last night, save for Cliff. I lost a little Sam love when he had to be such an instigator with the Frank/Marcel issue. Frank's reaction was completely over-the-top for what Marcel did to him. OMG, he put your toiletry bag on the floor! How DARE he! Maybe a better question was why was his toiletry bag in the kitchen to begin with?

[bklynred]

GNC wrote:

I thought Elia handled her conversation with Colliccio really well: 'Oh, that's how his palate is oriented. Okay.' I'd be very interested to see if and how she applies this understanding to her future dishes. Maybe she already did with the mushroom soup, and that's why it won.

I thought she did well with him too. She honestly wanted to hear his opinion, and managed to engage him without offending him (more or less; he did seemed surprised to have his decision challenged). She's gutsy, and her soup looked good; I'd eat it.

[clementine74]

if I were single and the opportunity presented itself and I knew for a fact that nobody would ever know... I could totally see myself having hate-sex with Marcel.

and...of course, if he were, you know...heterosexual.

I can't BELIEVE what a horrendous WITCH Betty is--boy, did she fool me.
My biggest hope right now is that Elan and Cliff are the top 2. Sam is adorable but a snooze. I think I would have a hard time dating someone who is such a healthy eater.
:/

[pamster]

I enjoy watching the show, but I think it's edited beyond credibility in anybody's actual reactions about anything. And also that the contestants are perhaps trying to give the camera what it wants (drama, big reaction, confrontation) to heighten the excitement, as part of the fun. JMO. We're not seeing what really happened. It's a reality show!

[bklynred]

You can always tell when the judges' speeches are dubbed: their voices don't match up at all. It's really annoying and obvious; it also makes me curious as to what Colicchio is really saying to people. Is he cursing them out? or just mumbling through it?

[india7]

clementine74 said:

if I were single and the opportunity presented itself and I knew for a fact that nobody would ever know... I could totally see myself having hate-sex with Marcel.

and...of course, if he were, you know...heterosexual.

According to Marcel himself on his MySpace page, he's straight.

I have never gotten the Marcel hate among the other cheftestants. Yes, he's kind of pompous and an annoying twit at times - but that's the kind of person you roll your eyes at and ignore. That's not the kind of person who inspires raging, violent hate. And it's not something that they're not showing us that's happening behind the scenes. Over at TWoP, someone posted one of the producer's blogs, and the producer himself said that Marcel is doing NOTHING behind the scenes to inspire this kind of rage and pile-ons, and that the producers themselves are totally mystified as to why the other cheftestants hate him. Besides, if Marcel were being an asshole, that makes for good reality TV - you know they'd be showing it. I have to agree with what GNC said - I think this is a case of the "cool kids" singling out the oddball of the bunch and piling on. Thank goodness the poor guy has Elia and Michael there. I would really love to see a double-boot of Betty and Frank. Psychotic fucking bullies.

[FiggyPudding]

That part about the producers not getting the Marcel hate is interesting. I know the crew cheered when Stephen got the boot (much to the judges' surprise, since they have little off-screen interaction with the contestants). And I think Tiffany was rude to some of the crew and was definitely disliked by most of the cast living with her.

I'm also surprised by much of the Marcel hate, even though I can understand it. I don't see a literal similarity to Stephen, but a figurative one. Both are perceived as arrogant, with non-mainstream tastes. Stephen made many more haughty statements; with Marcel I think it's more a perception based on his actions and expressions. The constant self-commentary to the cameras in the kitchen, etc. But when it comes down to it, he behaves professionally during the challenges and doesn't point fingers as much as the others (like Marisa, Elia, Emily, Mia, Sam, Frank, Betty to varying degrees).

I'm so glad I don't find Sam hot, because sometimes he says and does stupid things. Manipulating Frank over that stupid toothbrush issue was lame. Marcel was stupid to pretend he had thrown it on the floor, but Sam and Frank still overreacted and didn't care about the facts, it was all about piling on the whipping boy. If everyone is so much better than Marcel (in their minds), why get so worked up over him in such a juvenile fashion?

Betty: Go away and take your bellowing shriek and hypocritical attitude with you.

The show is using the same terrible looping that Project Runway does and the quick cuts are annoying. My hunch is the voice dubbing is mostly about technical mistakes, not content. I think the quick cuts are definitely manipulating the footage into a 'story', but Betty's screaming fits stand alone in my opinion.

Even if Marcel's incriminating footage exists on a cutting room floor; Betty doesn't reference any specific points that justify her over-the-top screamy outbursts (IMO). She and Frank will cut down his food and character by saying things like 'he annoys the hell out of me' and 'I just hate the guy's arrogance', etc. Hell, I say stuff like that all the time here, but my opinion doesn't alter the outcome of a cooking competition. Frank's at a judging table and completely dismisses Marcel's food based on how much he hates the guy! Betty did the same, when Marcel was in the top two! So unprofessional.

I think Betty is an incredibly immature phoney and Frank is still smarting from having his sauce 'lose' to Marcel's when Cliff tasted it.

ETA I just found out that Carlos' exit interview reveals that a lot of Betty's weird rage-acting toward Carlos didn't even make the show! I'm actually looking forward to getting back to the office so I can see it. Heh.

[bklynred]

Speaking of Carlos...I didn't even know there was a chef by that name til the salad episode where he got booted. That's how much of an impression he made on me.

[WitchyPoo]

I just watched the Thanksgiving episode and don't understand Frank's reaction. Twice, the camera cleary showed that his toothbrush was inside his toiletry bag. Marcel even mentioned it. Then Betty starts in on Marcel. She is really showing her true colors. At first she was bright and bubbly, smiles all around. Now she can barely keep her big mouth from spewing expletives.