'America's Next Top Model' lives up to its trashy reputation
Tonight on America's Next Top Model, the girls dressed like garbage in an elaborate metaphorical interpretation of the way the fashion industry treats women attempt to raise awareness about recycling. Riiight. (Fierce spoilers ahead...)
We rejoin the gals as Ebony is discussing how she's sick of doing poorly in panel, Ambreal is placing a tearful call home, and Heather is worrying about the lack of non-profile shots in her portfolio. Bianca, taking a break from her normally stank attitude, is actually pretty supportive and helpful towards Heather. Hmm. You know, I don't think I really hate any of the contestants this season. Not a Lisa, Melrose, or Jade to be found! Which is probably a bad thing, come to think of it.
In much more interesting news, Tyson Beckford has come a-calling! Ebony freaks out and runs away from him shrieking, which is pretty hysterical. He's there to teach the girls about how to be a spokesmodel, and instructs everyone to grab an item from the kitchen and try and sell it to the room. The girls' pitches are predictably entertaining. Money quote from Tyson, regarding the electric water heater Ebony's trying to sell: "Let me know it's hot, it's moist, and it's really what I want." Hee! Heather does a nice job, but Ambreal gets to feed Tyson a mango ... still in the peel. Wow, I don't think I've ever seen anyone just bite into an unpeeled mango like that. Yuck!
TyraMail! They're off to meet Tyson at a studio where they'll be doing a 30-second PSA in teams of three for Keep a Child Alive. Lisa, Chantal, and Bianca do well, though Bianca has some trouble getting her lines out. Heather, Jenah, and Ambreal have a very nice presentation. Sarah, Saleisha, and Ebony actually also do a pretty good job, though they get a bit messed up on the charity's actual purpose. Hey, nobody crashed and burned! Is this a Top Model first? Heather wins a photo shoot for Carol's Daughter, art directed by Mary J. Blige (huh?) in random drawing between the girls in her group, while Jenah and Ambreal win $500 gift baskets. In the photo shoot, it looks like they must've dipped Heather in a vat of bronzer, but it ends up looking pretty good.
As the girls chow down on chicken fingers and pizza in their walk-in closet that night, Ebony drops the H-bomb. No, the other H-bomb. That's right, she wants to go home. Suuure. We'll see if that pans out. The other girls take it about as seriously as I do.
The next morning, Orange Jay informs them that they'll be doing a high fashion photo shoot with a pro-recycling message, in which each of them will be representing a different recyclable material. It will be...dare I say it? Derelicte! Watching the girls try and smile as they realize they're going to be portraying trash is pretty hilarious, I have to say.
Heather, as "aluminum cans" (ha!), rocks the face-on shots, though I have to say, her final shot isn't quite as fabulous as her profiles have been. That may be due more to facial structure than anything else, though. Chantal, representing "shredded paper" (ha!), does fine, though her hair is totally covering her face in the final shot. Sarah, portraying "garbage bags" (ha!), does a good job with creative posing. Her final photo is really good, but Nigel mentions her weight loss, which she claims not to have really noticed. The old screen grab they show in comparison to her current weight is pretty funny, in that anyone tucking their chin in like that would look a bit chubby. Well-played, ANTM editors.
Saleisha, as "car parts" (ha!), is a little stiff. And also knocks over half the set. Her final shot, though, is great, and makes me feel better about her crazy haircut. Ebony, representing "bubble wrap" (ha!), is far from her best, and doesn't seem to take Jay's criticism seriously. It almost looks like she's snarling in her photo, and though she walks up to the panel with a smile, she doesn't leave it with one after being critiqued for her lackluster efforts and attitude on set. Jenah, as "cardboard boxes" (ha!), knocks it out as usual. And actually manages to look presentable at panel!
Bianca, portraying "oil" (ha!), has apparently mastered Tyra's mythical "smile with your eyes" technique. Though her final shot is a bit stiff pose-wise, her face is fantastic. Unfortunately, this means we don't get the traditional "smile with your eyes" tutorial at panel. Lisa is "plastic bottles" (ha!), and she does well at the shoot, though it doesn't really manifest itself in her final photo. Tyra thinks she needs to take riskier risks. Which may only make sense in Tyra's head. Ambreal, representing "newspaper" (ha!), tries to pose her heart out, but just can't make it interesting. She's got the ol' Dead Eyes, and makes the mistake of blaming it on her fake eyelashes. She also gets the "that's not the girl who started here" criticism, so it's a one-two punch. Yikes.
Before elimination, Ebony reiterates in an interview that she's hoping Tyra won't call her name. Tellingly, perhaps, she doesn't go so far as to say she'll quit. Tyson is the guest judge at panel. In solo deliberation, the judges praise Saleisha's improvement, Jenah's consistent fabulousness, and Heather's head-on skills. They don't love Ebony's attitude, Sarah's weight loss (which is taking her out of her plus-size niche), or Ambreal's...non-Top Model-ness.
Saleisha gets the first photo, followed by Jenah, Heather (continuing her reign of terror as Covergirl of the Week), Bianca, Sarah, Chantal, and Lisa. As anyone who saw the first five minutes of the episode could have guessed, that leaves Ebony and Ambreal, who were the weakest on set this week. Ebony gets the photo, and tearfully says, "I no longer want to be here." Wow, I didn't actually think she'd do it!
She says she doesn't think modeling is for her, but Tyra disagrees, saying that she thinks Ebony just can't handle people telling her she's not perfect. Harsh! I mean, Jesus, this is an industry that gives girls eating disorders and drug addictions in their quest to stay thin and "perfect." Is it really so bad to see that pressure up close and choose not to be a part of it? Deciding you don't want to be around people who are telling you you're doing a bad job, yelling directions at you, and criticizing your looks seems like a healthy and mature decision to me. Tyra says that "the most unattractive thing in the world to [her] is a quitter," and sends Ebony home. Ebony thanks her and leaves the room without hugging anyone. As the rest of the girls stand by, shell-shocked, Tyra encourages a sobbing Ambreal to make the most of her second chance. This is totally bananas, you guys!
In her exit interview, Ebony says that she's sorry for wasting everyone's time, that she really misses her family, and that she just wants to go back to being "happy Ebony." Which, true enough, we've never really seen. The editors show us her casting tape, in which she begs Tyra to let her on the show, saying "you won't regret it!" Aww.
How do you feel about Ebony's exit? Do you think Tyra has completely run out of good ideas for photo shoots?
For more TV recaps and commentary, visit Liz at Glowy Box.
Call me crazy, but I kinda praise Ebony for having the brascajones to speak up and quit, for much the same reasons you mentioned, love. What I found odd was the end clip they showed of her casting - the l*** didn't die, she just quit. That clip felt like a posthumous viewing of a drunk-driving crash victim. In addition, it was Tyra's idea in casting on the cruise to break down Ebony and declaw the *****iness. In all the seasons past she has done that the other girls (i.e. Eva the Diva), I don't think she was prepared for how Ebony would cope. Ebony had those roadblocks up for a reason it seems, and to have knocked them down as Tyra did (or at least started the process of knocking them down) may have caused some emotional fallout Ebony wasn't ready to handle on camera. Yes, the Plus-Size chick is definintely losing weight, but it is probably stress-induced; Heather continues to dominate, improving by leaps and bounds each week and standing a little taller. A very enjoyable time it was this evening. Cheers, ya'll.
I am so proud of Ebony, they were so negative to her, yes she did seem cold, but instead of helping they made it worse. I am Glad she stood up for herself, so few people do. It was a shock but im glad she did it. Good luck in your Future Ebony.
Yes, I am so proud of Ebony! That show is a sick, little, sadistic game for the judges with these silly girls as they're chess pieces... A bunch of rich fools sitting on high speaking in boring cliches and making inarticulate pronuncimientos. There are so many sweet girls with dreams of being famous, and so many people taking advantage of that. I really feel that Ebony suddenly understood what a nasty, little game she'd gotten herself into. It was great how Tyra couldn't change her mind with her insincere words. It was clear Tyra didn't give a **** about her, she just didn't want her to walk out. And when she whispered in Ambreal's ear, "It was meant to be"... I was sickened by how completely empty and corrupt she is. Seriously, I don't think I can vote for Barack Obama simply because he appeared on the Tyra Banks Show. I can't believe I got online and researched what other people were saying, but I was so sickened by Tyra and so impressed with Ebony's courage tonight that I had to find out if I was alone. I thought showing Ebony's casting video was also in poor taste, but in the end I thought it showed she saw she'd made a mistake and wasn't afraid to walk away. I started watching the show this season, because I've been getting encouraged to model and I thought I could pick up tips, but I felt the same way as Ebony... Every experience made me feel awful. Tourists have stopped me to take pictures with me in Times Square, because they say I'm so beautiful, and yet when I model they pick me to pieces and I feel miserable. I've actually turned down two modelling contracts, and I'm so, so happy to see other girls have some sense, too. It's not good to turn yourself into an unfeeling object! We're women not things! Milan Kundera defined kitsch as the denial of ****. Modelling is like turning yourself into a waxen doll-- no pimples, no body hair, no pubic hair, no "extra" pounds...Some Thing that don't ****. We women need another sexual revolution... where anyone who practices hours and hours of open-squinty eyes, anyone who's more interesting when she's holding still than when she's talking (cough...Tyra) is considered a moron not a role model and certainly NOT a woman.
Isabella: Holy cow you are getting waaay too into Ebony! Let's not make her out as a martyr shall we? I mean to make Ebony seem like she was courageous and brave is a bit of a stretch. Remember that she wasn't going to say anything unless Tyra didn't call her name. To me that's cowardly. If she was really standing up for what she believed in, then she should've spoken about it immediately when she first walked into panel.
Good to know you are the judge of what makes a woman.
Liz: Is the mango peel edible? I usually eat mango without the peel. So I don't know if Tyson knew that, or if he was just going for sexual aggressive animal.
Basically there's a difference between quiting something because you don't like it and it isn't for you and quiting because something is hard. Kudos to you Ebony for trying, good luck with the rest of your life. Up yours, Tyra. What a b****.
I thought Ebony did the right thing too. She decided she didn't like it and wanted out - what's wrong with that? She's not a quitter. She's young, she wants to do something else, and she can. I think Tyra is a self-involved jerk. She's so into herself and the "high fasion" modeling (if that's what you can call Victoria's Secret). I think it's tacky the way the panel criticizes someone by saying maybe they'll do o.k. as a "print or catalogue model", like that's so beneath what they are doing. Anyway, the audition clip showed how peppy and vibrant Ebony was before the show, and now it seems that all of the life was just drained out of her. She's so young, she needs time to mature and just find out who she is and continue on a path that's right for her. Why is Tyra so shocked that modeling is not for everyone? There are alot of beautiful women out there who wouldn't dream of being a model. Good luck Ebony!
Loved/hated how when Nigel accused Sarah of losing weight, she had a very confused look on her face, like "was that a compliment or do I need to start pigging out?" Poor thing. Too big to be skinny, too skinny to be plus-sized. She must be what we call, and can't find in the fashion media, "normal."
this is one of the most boring season's yet----and it's obvious the final four will be heather, lisa, bianca and jenah.
Phew...thank goodness Ebony IS GONE. Took long enough !What warranted her to be there in the first place?! Tyra overlooked some decent, STRONG and confident aspiring models from episode #1 to make way for UMMM,her???? AARGGHH !!
Is it just me or do they always seem to leave some poor hapless girl on there longer than they should. Good on Ebony for throwing in the towel before they messed her up completely. There's nothing wrong with being young and trying new things and deciding that you don't like them. That is what being young is for. Shame on Tyra for acting like being a model is the only thing worth doing. Ebony's profile says that she's a nursing student. Shame on her for wanting to go back to doing that!