'Make Me a Supermodel' The old 1980s

Tonight, on Make Me a Supermodel, I do believe I lost the last of my faith. I lost my faith in the concept that the model agency execs had clue one and I lost my faith in the idea that the producers were trying to give us anything that resembled truth. But, lets starts at the beginning.

I know last week I erred in stating that the final 3 were Katy, Jacki and Frankie, when in reality it was Katy, Ronnie and Frankie. I suppose it was just my wishful thinking. Jacki was in the lowest 4, but was not put up for the vote and in the end, the little emotional center of the show- Katy, the girl called fat at 125 lbs - was finally eliminated from the show. And I hope she gets into some counseling or something, because hello, onset of eating disorder! How disheartening to see her riding away from the house while voice overing "Maybe I am average".  Back at the house, the hopefuls are in a battle of the sexes as Perry calls out sexist remarks to Shannon, yelling for her to do the dishes and cook him food. Boy, his girlfriend is a lucky, lucky gal, huh? For her part, Shannon yells back for him to learn to wipe his own a$$ and rolls her eyes.

When we get into the challenges, I get a little hopeful, as they are standing in a professional theater and being told that they will need to express a story using just their expression and body language. I must have been delusional in thinking that there might be an acting coach in the wings somewhere to guide them. Instead, it's just Tyson, monotoning direction from off camera. The remaining 9 hopefuls are broken into groups of 3 and given a scenario to act out. So now they not only have to figure out how to model on their own, but how to act too.

Jacki, Perry and Ben are given "Anger" and suddenly the promos that Bravo has been playing for the last several days make sense. Cut to look like Jacki and Perry got into a physical altercation on the show, we now learn that they were just acting. Perry used their personal differences to bring out the best performance in his partners, which was very smart of him because they definitely captured some great shots. Even better, he did so in a way that still allowed them to laugh about it afterward - even if only awkwardly. In the end, they got the job done.

Holly, Ronnie and Frankie are less successful acting out "love", thought Frankie certainly gives it his all, delivering a tearful performance. Ronnie and Holly photograph well together, but knowing she's virginal and he's gay gave me giggles as he attempted to whisper hot and sexy somethings in her ear to get the shot, and also amazed me that they were able to pull it together as well as they did. The weakest group is the last, Stephanie, Shannon and Casey with "jealousy". Shannon shines, but Casey just lays there and Stephanie cannot muster anything resembling anger or jealousy.

For Valentine's Day the boys decide to cook the girls dinner and the girls decide to decorate the house. Afterward they are given a DVD of messages from home. Everyone Ooos, Ahhhs and laughs over their messages from family and significant others. Until they realize at the very end that there was no message for Perry. That's gotta sting. Perry calls his girlfriend, hoping for an explanation and to wish her not only happy Valentine's Day but also happy first anniversary. What we get instead is a distinctly uncomfortable look into their relationship, which appears marked by trust issues and manipulation.

The runway challenge sets the models into pairs, with Jacki volunteering to be the cheese that stands alone. They each pick cards of what story they will have to convey in their walk with the help of a stylist and enough time to choreograph what they want to do. They each throw themselves into the challenge, with Jacki barking and making faces a the mirror while Ronnie and Ben draw diagrams of the runway. But, in the end, much of it comes off more as play acting then runway walking.  Holly and Stephanie as "super hero and villain" don't quite capture it for me, partly because the styling feels off and partly because...well, comic books and fashion shows don't have a lot of cross over. Shannon and Frankie as "old Hollywood" are styled to look like Errol Flynn and Marlene Dietrich, and Shannon is great, but I get the feeling that Frankie didn't know who Errol Flynn was. Jacki pulls together a good enough "executive B!tch", which could just as easily have been "Strict Professor". Casey and Perry as "high society" are totally foppish and funny, though not very fashion oriented. And Ben and Ronnie as "Rock stars" look very Ziggy Stardust, but with the leaping and posturing, they just take it too far.

But the worst performance of all comes from Jennifer Starr, "the premier print casting agent in America", who suffers from total plot loss when she compliments Shannon on her "Victor/Victoria". Seriously? There was nothing androgynous about Shannon tonight and when did "old Hollywood" begin to refer to the 1980s? And how someone in an industry based on iconic fashion images cannot recognize Marlene Dietrich circa 1930 in the Von Sternberg "masterpiece of artifice", Morocco, is just beyond me. Or, as Andy said " I ... They ... *sigh*".

In the end of it all, Shannon comes out on top while Stephanie is criticized for picking and choosing which challenges she wants to put actual effort into, Frankie is told he needs more charisma, Casey is lectured on delivering in all his assignments and Ronnie is given the direction of creating more dimension in his wholesome appearance or be relegated to the fashion Siberia of catalog work. Casey is given a reprieve while Stephanie, Frankie and Ronnie are put up for the vote. As for myself, I mourn for Marlene Dietrich.