Project Runway Junior: S2 E3: "En Garde Avant Garde"

This is what Project Runway Junior has going for it: young, talented designers who don't get handled with kids gloves. I mentioned this last year while reviewing the show's first season. Dealing with kids automatically heightens the emotions of a thing. We're genetically programmed to further our species. This means we're genetically programmed to want to protect the young of our species. Reality competitions are hard. They're stressful and emotional powder kegs. Spending time with a group of people, growing close to that group, but always knowing that at the end of the day you're competing against one another is hard and stressful and confusing for an adult. You know it's harder for a teenager. So PRJR comes equipped with heightened emotions that PR simply can't match.

But there's more than just pathos in this show. The fact of the matter is PRJR wouldn't work if the kids they found weren't so damn talented. Project Runway has never not been about art and fashion. As such, you need great artists at its core for it to be compelling. This was never more on display than it was last season when everyone was pretty much equally (middlingly) talented. The complaint that would have quickly sank the PRJR ship would have been if the quality of the clothing produced had been significantly lesser than the quality of clothing on its parent show. Luckily, that's never been the case. I don't know if we're more impressed with the fashion on this show because we have lower expectations due to the youth of the contestants, or because it's genuinely masterful. All I do know is that I've never failed to be impressed with the fashion on this show.

And this season hasn't been any different. I've watched all three episodes even though I didn't review the first two. I needed a bit of a break in the wake of PR, but I have been impressed so far. Through three episodes, I would proclaim Tieler, Rene, Izzy, and Cartier, as the contestants to beat. I'll be keeping a close eye on Allie, Molly, and Chris as they interest me but I think they've been a little inconsistent thus far.

The Challenge

This week sees the remaining ten designers broken up into pairs and asked to create an Avant Garde look inspired by fencing gear and armor. It's an interesting way to introduce us all to the fact that Tim's taken up fencing in his old age. Most people celebrate a mid-life crisis with a sports car, Tim Gunn started learning a new sport with a phallic weapon. C'est la vie!

The button bag continues to be the decider of teams on PRJR. If I remember correctly, the show completely avoided any aspect of the school yard pick last season, and it seems like they're doing so again. When your contestant base is made up of a bunch of artsy, queer kids who have probably been on the harsh end of a school yard pick their whole lives, it makes sense to save them from that when you gather them together in doing something they all love.

From the start, the trouble team is Hawwaa and A'kai. As a quick aside, between those two, Cartier, and Tieler, we've got some of the most interesting names reality TV has ever seen, but I digress. Both Hawwaa and A'kai were in the bottom last week, and with good reason. Hawwaa points this out and makes it clear that they're the underdogs. But we've seen underdogs bounce back and be made stronger by their union on this show in the past.

And then they start working together and it's clear that this isn't going to be one of those stories. Team challenges are always hard, and communication is always the problem at the center of each poor team. Hawwaa and A'kai simply cannot communicate. Admittedly, A'kai's problems with clear communication were showcased all the way back to the first episode when he had the oddest exchange with a Mood employee that we've ever seen. He's also been shown to be a sensitive boy who cries under a very limited amount of stress. So he cries multiple times and always looks like he's mere seconds away from crying.

Then there's Hawwaa. As I was watching, I kept trying to figure out who came off worse in this episode. In the end, my money's on Hawwaa. At Mood, she goes on about how she has to be the leader because A'kai is younger than her. Then in the workroom, when he asks her for her input on sometime, she tells him to just go off and do it on his own. Then before the runway show, he makes a change without telling her and she goes off on him about not including her in the decision. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think you can have it three ways. Either you fall into the leadership role and you offer the guidance needed to accomplish the task, or you shirk that responsibility and just allow your team to sink or swim on its on accords. Either way, once you've chosen, you don't get to complain when the team makes a choice that's in accordance with your decision. The moment she said she didn't care anymore and A'kai just needed to finish the skirt however, was the moment she lost all right to be upset about him making a choice and not including her in it.

Everyone else seems to work together quite well and it shows in their final looks.

The Runway

Chelsea and Allie: Wow! Now that is one hell of a way to kick off a runway show. The neck line going so high up is stunning, the shoulders and those points are amazing, and the manner in which they employed the same technique on the pants is really smart. Love it.

Chris and Rene: Stunning! It's maybe just a little more wearable than I'd like for an Avant Garde challenge, but it's still exceptional and far out there. That jacket is to die for. The hood, the back of it, everywhere you look there's something stunning to behold. I like the jumpsuit a lot too. The way Rene loves showing skin continues to be impressive. At some point I wonder if his taste level might falter. It hasn't so far, and I love anticipating what he's sending down each week. But if this is the winning look, I think the win goes to that jacket!

A'kai and Hawwaa: It's poorly constructed, and the two pieces don't go together well, but it's not horrible. The top is striking, and there's a play on hard and soft that I can appreciate. It's not very good, and it may turn out to be the worst thing on the runway, but I've seen worse in PR history. 

Izzy and Cartier: I think this is beautiful, but I don't think it's very exciting. I think the poofy hips technique is an easy and lazy way to go when you do Avant Garde. But it's done well here. She says they have three pieces, but I thought I only saw two. 

Molly and Tieler: I love it. It's weird and out there, but wonderfully well constructed and thought out. I thought the back might be a little more open than it was, which would have been an interesting touch, but it all comes together wonderfully well. For someone with immunity, Tieler certainly didn't play it safe. 

Judgement

Allie and Chelsea are in the top along with Molly and Tieler. Hawwaa and A'kai find themselves in the bottom with Chris and Rene. 

It's pretty obvious that Chris and Rene aren't in danger of going home against what A'kai and Hawwaa did, but I was surprised by just how much the judges didn't like their outfit. Admittedly, it's more wearable than an Avant Garde look should be, but that's the only complaint I had about it. Aya calls it safe, which I don't agree with, and Christian simply doesn't like jumpsuits. I can't disagree with his point that the jumpsuit might not be where fashion is going, but I don't know that I think a general prejudice against the idea means you don't get to engage with the look on its own merits. I neither love nor hate a jumpsuit, but this one was at least well made and interesting. Or at least I thought it was. And the jacket was the selling point of the outfit to begin with and simply doesn't get the attention I think it deserves. 

The two winning teams are commended for how well they worked together and collaborated on their different ideas to create a new whole. As anyone could have predicted, Hawwaa and A'kai implode on the runway. It doesn't take very much of them trying to explain how hard it was for the judges to get the picture and pretty much tell them to just stuff it. 

Tieler and Molly get the win, and since the jacket was the bigger deal, Tieler gets his second win in a row. After a really difficult deliberation, and with Kelly in tears, A'kai is sent home. But anyone who was watching the episode and knew enough about the show knew what was coming next. The moment A'kai went to Tim during the workroom segment of the show to confess his struggles with Hawwaa and to ask his advice was the moment that sealed it in stone. If A'kai was to be sent home this episode, Tim was going to use his save on him. And he did exactly that. 

The looks of shock within the greenroom aren't without reason. It's the third episode of a long season, and already Tim Gunn has used his save. Here we go with yet another discussion about what the save is for; it seems like we touch on this every time he uses the damn thing. The truth of the matter is that A'kai isn't ready to be at this level of competition. He managed to escape the bottom three in the first episode on the sheer luck that there were three worse looks than his on the runway. Admittedly, three looks isn't a very large sample size, but what I can see for sure is that I have no real interest in seeing anything else from A'kai because I don't really think he has much more to show. He stumbled on the team challenge, but that's no more of a reason to save him than Lucas' failing on the unconventional materials challenge was basis to save him last week. Indeed, after Lucas' stunning dress in the first episode, there was more cause to save him last week than there was to save A'kai this week. 

But Tim liked him, and he asked Tim for help, and Tim helped him out about as much as it's within his power to do so. A'kai talks a big game about making sure everyone knows he was worth the save, but we'll see about that. Honestly, I don't expect him to make it to the midpoint of the season, but who knows. 

Loose Threads

--As much as I think Tim made the wrong choice in using his save, I did enjoy the scene between him and A'kai. Tim Gunn as mentor is one of the other things this show has going for it. Hannah is an alright host, but clearly she's no Heidi. Keeping Tim on and finding three really great judges is a choice that will keep this show afloat. 

--On thing this show has as a mark against it, however, is it's editing. The runway on the first episode was horrible. Each look was cut before you could get a good look at it. And there's something about the judgement sections that feels impossibly rushed and I've been noticing the music during them for some reason. Either the music needs to be lowered, or they need to pick something that adds tension but doesn't draw too much attention to itself. It's all rather disconcerting. And the makeup section of each episode needs to go away. The designers don't seem to get hair and makeup consultations, so why there's any time spent on that is beyond me. If it's the same set of producers behind this show as are behind PR, then this show really confirms that they've totally forgotten how to make a good hour long episode. 

--I mentioned Rene's aesthetic briefly but I must say, I'm really quite impressed with it. For a 17-year-old, it's really interesting how well he can make flattering, sexy clothes for a woman's body. With that being said, I feel odd looking at him with his many sleeveless, v-neck shirts and oddly short shorts. Put some damn clothes on that kid already so I don't have to feel like perv. 

--One thing I find interesting this season is the manner in which these kid's beliefs seem to matter to them and seep into their clothing. Allie and Hawwaa both admit that they come from religious and strict backgrounds, so neither of them really like to design revealing clothing. Allie's been able to do some interesting things without having to show much skin so far, and I'm curious to see if she can keep it up. Hawwaa made some comments about Rene's first dress that I'd like her to keep to herself from now on.  

Project Runway: S15 E11 "Bold Innovation"

While Forest Gump's mother was explaining to him about chocolates, my mother was expressing to me  the importance of not fixing something that ain't broke. If one thing's clear after 15 seasons, Project Runway has taken that advice and run with it. Here's a show that's so in love with its own formula that it won't even try and shake things up after a week's hiatus. And rightfully so since its a formula that tends to work more than not, but it doesn't make for exceptionally exciting viewing.

The last time we were together, I was complaining about this very thing: the lack of personality, the lack of story being told. But last time the episode had that surprising ending to rely on. This week we aren't so lucky.

The Challenge

In the episode's defense, this week they were planning on the challenge itself bringing all of the drama needed. It's the typical avant garde challenge for Project Runway, but this year they've added the twist of using unconventional materials.

Remember all of those times towards the front of the season when I complained about them trying to cram way too much into each challenge. Well here they go again with that. First off, it's a problem that our second unconventional materials challenge comes in the 11th episode. Unconventional materials is as integral to the PR fabric as actual fabric is, so why skimp on those challenges this go around? Secondly, isn't the avant garde challenge generally big enough and exciting enough not to need the bump of unconventional materials?

I'll give the producers this much credit: the avant garde challenge shouldn't ever come any earlier or later than the top six. Generally speaking, I don't think the talent level is paired down enough before this point to have a really good runway show. After the top 6, the stakes are just too high, and you risk forming your top four on a fluke gimmick challenge. So kudos on the placement of the episode, but they could have had better execution on the finer points.

The rest of the episode is about what you'd expect. The longer run time mixed with the smaller group number means we spend more than enough time with each designer talking about their concepts. We see them working with the metal in unique ways, but since they have two days for this challenge, nothing really comes together until the second day.

There is an example of solid and consistent storytelling here. Erin wastes her first day on creating these weird applique things. Mah-Jing tells her she's using the wrong glue and it's not going to do what she wants when it dries, but she ignores him. The next day he's proven right, her flower things are unusable, and she looks screwed. It's solid storytelling because we've seen this tendency from her multiple times before. The way she'll spend all of her time on one little thing and the rest of the look will suffer because of it. But if you expected this to translate to something major down the road, we'll circle back around to it at the end.

Since there's nothing particularly exciting in this episode, allow me to take the time to talk about something PR has always done and that I've never really cared for. All of the confessional moments in which the contestants talk about the other designs. I've never cared one bit about what these people think about the competition's work. Very rarely, if ever, are their comments reflected by the judges. Most often their positions are colored by general dislike of one another or the sheer fact that they're in competition with each other. So why do we have to spend so much time listening to them dis on each other's looks? This is one of those moments where the time could better be spent elsewhere. But I digress.

The Runway

Cornelius: I've got to say, I'm impressed with the finished product. I think the tube placement is a little suspect to be sure, but there's something to look at. The color is a great addition, and the fabric he chose is very chic. It conveys his vision well, so I think he pulled this out. 

Mah-Jing: I think I hate it, but at the very least I certainly don't get it. It looks like a simple dress on to which he glued, or sewed a lot of wire crap. The asymmetry of the wire pieces on the back may have been purposeful, but it certainly doesn't look like it. And it's so obvious she can't walk without her hands holding the damn dress up. No good. 

Rik: I love this and it's totally wrong for this challenge. To be fair, I love it more from the front than from the back. The metal piece on the back looks like a weird cape or reverse bib thing. From the front it's chic and cool, and it's like he said: wearable. But how wearable should an avant garde look be? If this were just an unconventional materials challenge, I'd have him down for the win, but as an avant garde challenge, it just doesn't go far enough. 

Erin: Yeah ok. I like it. But I hate her, so it's hard for me to like it. The top is the only thing about it that's unconventional, but the entire top is unconventional, so I think that's a good mix. It's risky and certainly out there in a way that I think says avant garde. And I'll commend her for making pants instead of a dress. All in all I'm more impressed than I wish I was. 

Laurence: I don't think the length is really the problem here, the problem is she created a lovely little black dress, but that's it. She needed to take this way farther. Is it beautiful? Yes. Is it well made? Certainly, Is it right for this challenge? Not even remotely. 

Roberi: I think the statement piece of the mask sales this for me. It puts the entire thing over the top, but I wonder if the judges will think it makes it all too costume-y. I hope not because I love this. It's shape and sleekness, it's all way more sexy than sheets of metal should be.  

Judgement

The judges are at least all in agreement that there was something to enjoy about each of the pieces on the runway. Which is exactly why you save this challenge for the top six. Ultimately, it's Roberi, Rik, and Erin in the top, Mah-Jing and Cornelius in the bottom, and Laurence just kind of oddly in the middle. 

Mostly the judges think Laurence should have worked in some color other than black this time around. They like what she does, and that's understandable, but they're ready to see a little more from her. For my money, I thought the same thing on this challenge but not about the color. I thought she could have made her typical shoulders but then just made them bigger and more exaggerated and that would have been a fun way to go. Either way it seems like she hears the criticism and we can expect new things from her in the last challenge before NYFW.

One clear theme of the judging is how well incorporated the materials are. Rik and Roberi are commended because their metals and their fabric blend so well together. Rik in particular isn't hit nearly enough for the look being subtle. Heidi points out that avant garde doesn't have to mean unwearable, so that goes to show you how much I know. 

Mah-Jing and Cornelius on the other hand, not so much. About Mah-Jing's look, Nina says his unconventional materals aren't anything more than decoration. They're more split on Cornelius' look which they certainly find disturbing, which is what he was going for. But again the issue of incorporation is brought up and Nina thinks it's a rather cliche vision of the future. Heidi seems to like it more than the others and claims that fashion should be provocative. 

Erin's look they love. The color pops on a muted runway, they like it that she made pants, Heidi of course loves the amount of skin shown, and they all think her top is interesting. Zac points out that she should have thought about what it would look like from the back a little more, but that's really the only negative comment. So for all of the groundwork laid earlier in the episode about her poor time management, Erin actually ends up the winner of the challenge. I guess there's an arc there to be noticed, but the foundation was one where you expected her to crash and burn. You expected her to waste time for the last time and pay the price, but that wasn't the story at all. I don't know if that's a good or a bad thing, but I do know that PR could really take some time to sure up its storylines a little more. But then again, I think I've been saying that for years now. 

Mah-Jing loses and it's honestly the only realistic choice. He hasn't been long for this world for awhile now, but as everyone's quick to point out, it's kind of amazing he even made it this far so cheers. It's been pointed out in the comments that it's hard to really be excited for the talent level this season. Of the five contestants left, the only person who consistently makes you get up out of your seat is Laurence. While, on the one hand, I think that makes her a shoe in for the win this season, it also makes for an interesting situation in which everyone else is pretty evenly matched. Whether that makes you excited for the show at NYFW or just bored with it is a personal choice. For my money, I'm assuming there won't necessarily be a bad collection this year, and that's kind of exciting. 

Loose Threads

--I hope everyone had an amazing Thanksgiving! I celebrated it with friends in Italy (a few days in Rome and then the last bit, including the holiday, in Florence) and it was fantastic! Trying to cobble together Thanksgiving day ingredients from Italian markets when you don't speak the language was a lot of fun, and dinner actually turned out perfect. I wish I had just stayed there, but here I am, ready to keep writing for you guys. 

--Allow me to be clear when I say I don't think there will be a bad collection at NYFW it's because I expect Cornelius to go home next week. I may not love Erin and Roberi's aesthetics, but I do trust them to put out solid and interesting collections. 

--The Mood section of the episode is heavy on the Swatch and that's always the right choice. I like it when he's all rambunctious and adorable. 

--Mah-Jing is a sweetheart, but I couldn't have been the only person thinking they wished he'd just shut the fuck up and go home already. He has more to say on the runway and in the greenroom after being auf'd than anyone in the history of the show.

--I think I saw the first preview of Project Runway JR this week, and I couldn't be more excited. 

Project Runway: S14 E11 "The Runway's in 3D"

I'm not going to lie, Runaways, I don't really know what to make of this. On the one hand, this has to
be the best episode we've had in quite some time, right? The challenge is engaging and inventive with unique elements added in to spice up something we've seen multiple times from the show. The looks are honestly all beautiful in their own way. And this is clearly the first challenge where you can see just how much dead weight has been cut from the show. There's no Swapnil here to pull focus, there's no out of left field type of edit. It's just an organic kind of episode that comes along in a drab season and reminds me of what I like about this show even after 14 long seasons. But on the other hand, there's the ending, and I honestly don't know if I want to commend them for it or chastise them. But I guess before I get to the end I should start with the beginning.

At the top five, we've finally come to the PR staple of the Avant Garde challenge. I know how this often leads to so much speculation about what Avant Garde actually means such as it relates to fashion, but let's shelve that discussion once and for all. Because after so many years, I think it's clear what Avant Garde means to Project Runway. But this is also a rather special Avant Garde challenge as it's incorporating 3D printing into the look and stealing from that other PR staple: the design your own textile challenge. So the designers are to be inspired by one of the three iconic bridges in New York to create an Avant Garde look while also creating 3D elements to be printed on fabric and incorporated into those looks. They have $200 for a trip to Mood, and two days for the challenge. It's a lot to take in, but I can't help but to think it's all the right choice. Avant Garde looks require money and time and a unique perspective, and to their credit the producers gave the designers all of those things.

At Mood, we see Kelly choosing horrible fabric, but with a clear cut reason behind it, Ashley choosing beautiful fabric for the first time in weeks, and Candice finally not choosing black. Although she goes back for a little black at the end, and who can blame her? The most interesting thing here is Tim seeming to stick close to Ashley and remark about how much he likes her fabric selection. Again it's possible that he does this for other designers too and it just doesn't make the edit, but I was left wondering if there isn't some clear cut favoritism happening on Tim's part for Ashley. She got the extra time with her client last challenge when Swapnil didn't, and after two challenges in a row of choosing horrible fabric, she gets him over her shoulder here pointing out that she's making a good choice? It's highly possible I'm reading too much into it, but these shouldn't even be questions we have at this point, so who's fault is that?

In the workroom, everyone pretty much just gets to work and seems to know what direction they're heading in. It's the most efficient we've seen the group and it left me wondering if Swapnil's lack of motivation wasn't dragging the other designers down too. I don't know if that's the case, but I do know that this is one moment where they all seem to be on point and have solid things created by the end of the first day. Also there's a visit by the person who runs the 3D printing place so they can all go over what the techs created based on their previous sketches for the textile. I don't know why that last minute consultation before things started being printed was important to me, but something about making sure the designers could give a final OK before everything was printed and couldn't be taken back was nice.

Day two is as seamless as day one was, and it's moments like these that make my job here really hard. There's nothing to say, nothing to really talk about, no drama to speak of. Tim comes in and has way more positive things to say than negative. Ashley needs to work on better combining her two pieces so they look like the same outfit, and it sounds to me like he's convincing himself to like Kelly's look more so than actually liking it, but still. The highlight of Tim's visit for me is the time he spends with Merline. It's no secret that this should be Merline's challenge in the same way the last week's should have been Ashley's. Being inspired by pieces of architecture to create an architectural dress has Merline written all over it. I think Merline's first word as a baby was architecture. So everyone judges her a little more harshly because the bar is a bit higher. But when Tim comes over, he doesn't throw her design under the bus because the basis of it really is solid. However he does draw her attention to certain construction based issues that she's clearly too close to the dress to be able to see on her own. He points out the thin line between purposefully messy and mistake level messy and says that the shapes on the bottom of her dress are more the former. It's really the reason Tim Gunn is there, and it all just works out really well.

Ashley decides that she needs another element to her look to add a kind of wow factor and push it into the Avant Garde realm. She decides a poncho is the way to go. My immediate thought was that she wanted to take her look to the next level and so she decided to cover most of it up... thats just weird. But the poncho/cape thing actually works, kind of, so there's that. The hardest decision she's left with is how to use her 3D printed materials. Back when Laurie was still with us, I said that her biggest downfall was that she tended to have one idea and then when that didn't work, she was left floundering and trying to just throw something together. That's what I feel about Ashley here too. Where Edmond says that he doesn't know how he'll use his 3D design until he has it in his hands and something will come to him, Ashley just never seems to have an idea. She has an idea for her overall look, but not for how to use the 3D aspect of the challenge. And so she's left just staring at them for awhile-ostensibly thinking about what to do next. It feels like a look into how brain power and fresh ideas can often be a limited resource, and maybe Ashley's exhausted her tank and is just running on empty now.

The model fitting happens without a hitch, and you have to be a bit amazed by just how well everything fit. Considering how dependent on a tight fit Ashley, Edmond, and Candice's looks all are, it's wonderful that they hit that home run on the first time out. The model fitting is also the first time you can see the more sculpted aspect of Edmond's dress, and that's what takes it out of the realm of a simple black dress and puts it more into the Avant Garde. I wasn't in love with Edmond's look until I saw it in the model fitting, and then it took my breath away. But if I'm going to talk about the looks, we might as well head to the runway and get it over with.

The Runway:

Merline: I think it’s nice, but I also think it makes more sense in Merline’s head than it does in practice. I like the idea of shifting from two to three dimensions, but I think the presence of the 3d printed stuff on the top kind of negates that. I think if there could have been one portion of the dress that was totally 2d, it would have worked more. but the finished product is still nice. The color is great, I love the length of the skirt for some reason, and I think it looks well put together. I think some aspects of the skirt look more accidentally haphazard than purposeful, but still. 

Edmond: This is perfect on a level that’s just ridiculous. I think the smartest thing here is the fact that he doesn’t do the 3d printed aspects on both of the straps on the front. Putting them only on one was genius. And then all down the back was also genius. This dress fits her like it’s no one’s business, and the sculpted parts on the skirt are fantastic. And the vail he made is just to die for. You can always tell just how much he's thinking about his looks. I couldn’t love this more if I tried. 

Ashley: I think sticking with the 3d printed stuff on just the shoulders was the wrong way to go. If she could have brought them all the way around the back, that might have been better, but the placement is all wrong. I also think it would have been interesting to place them on the bottom of the poncho and give it a little more weight maybe. But other than that I like the look. I like the movement, and I think the two pieces under the poncho are great. I’d like to see her take it the poncho off while walking and let’s see the rest of the look, but still. 

Candice: Man oh man! The corset lacing in the back! The shine on that fabric! The fit of this dress! This is great! If I have a complaint, it’s that I’d like for the hem to maybe flair out more if possible into more of a firm hoop like shape, and I think the neck is odd. I know she planned on going with a more structured neckline, but I guess she tossed that idea for some reason. I love this so much!

Kelly: I like it. I’d like the 3d printed material to be a different color than the fabric she chose so it could stand out more. As is, I think those details get lost in the rest of the dress. But I think this is nice. She went literal, and it’s not the most overwhelming thing on the runway (which I think is saying something all things considered) but it also doesn’t feel like a costume to me. I like it. 

Nina's the harshest judge during the critiques, but it's pretty obvious the judges liked everything they saw tonight. Ashley's rightfully called out for the placement, as well as the design, of her 3D printed material. Heidi and Zac point out that Merline's look reminds them of Kini's umbrella dress from last year, and the look is a bit too safe for her, but it's still pretty. Nina doesn't care as much for Candice and Edmond's gowns as they don't scream Avant Garde to her, but the other's like them and they all agree that Candice has the best use of the 3D printed material out of everyone. Kelly's look pops for me on the runway when Nina gets the model to turn around and we see the lacing detail is on the side as well as the front. I hadn't noticed that before and it was a really nice surprise. 

Of course with Kelly taking the biggest risk and creating something that was so much more extreme than anyone else, she gets the win. Again, we know what Avant Garde means to Project Runway enough that anyone could have called that from a mile away. The slightly more surprising result is the decision to send Merline home. Not because her look wasn't the worst thing out there. Grading on the curve that is the overall brilliance of all the designs, I think it's fair to say that Merline's is the most underwhelming. And again, given who she's been all season long, the bar was maybe a bit higher for her this week. I'm honestly surprised that they sent anyone home at all. I'm equally surprised that Tim didn't use his save here. There's no talk of this being the episode that determines who's going to NYFW, so clearly they're ostensibly planning on a top three this year. It makes sense given how low the overall talent level was that you'd want to just bring three designers into the finale for the first time in a long long time. But this was also the first episode we've had where everything was honestly beautiful and worth sticking around over. 

This is a good thing for the show as it means we might finally be at a point where the remaining designers are taking this seriously and the talent level has finally been kicked up a notch. At this stage in the competition, everything we see should be great and the decision on who to send home should be harder and harder. That hasn't been the case until now. And so on the one hand, I want to commend the judges for doing their jobs and making the hard decision. On the other hand, as a fan of the show who has put up with the middling talent level of this season for 11 long episodes, I kind of want it to last a bit longer. So there was a part of me that was hoping the judges, or maybe just Tim Gunn, would say "You know what, you've all done too good a job to warrant sending anyone home today. Everyone's safe, and we'll go at it again next time." The interesting thing is that given Jake's choice to leave the competition a few episodes back, they should actually be ahead of schedule. That means they could afford to go one week without sending anyone home and it wouldn't be a big deal, right? But they don't do that here and it feels like another missed opportunity. Oh well, Merline is all smiles as she goes, and you can tell she was honestly fine with going home on something she truly believed in, and she was happy to have made it this far. And then there were four. It seems like next week will be for all the chips, I guess. 

Loose Threads:

--At the beginning of the episode, the designers talk about Swapnil going home and Candice and Kelly can't seem to fathom how someone could just give up like that. At each point that they make such a statement, the camera pans to Ashley for a reaction shot and I can't figure out why. She doesn't have any particular kind of expression on her face, and she's clearly not about to give up so there's no real subtext to it, so what the hell?

--When was the last time we saw Swatch? I'm getting worried!

--Did anyone else think they've been sitting on this 3D printing idea ever since Justin's final collection a couple years back?

--Candice points out that Kelly's really grown as a designer on this show, and I couldn't agree more. She didn't make any kind of impression on me at all until recently, and when she did, she started winning. It's a great transformation. And two wins back to back this close to the end bodes very well for her. 

--Speaking of Candice, guest judge Mel B asks if she can wear Candice's dress to an event she's got coming up. I mean, Kelly wins and gets a 3D printer (a 3d printer valued at $1000 I might add), but Candice gets her look worn by a celebrity on a red carpet somewhere! I don't know which is the bigger deal, but I'm leaning towards Candice. 

--There was a solid amount of time during the closer look where Zac just had his hand on Ashley's model's thigh. She's wearing very little fabric, and he's basically grouping her. Seriously, Zac, keep your hands to yourself. 

Project Runway: S13 E8: "The Rainway"

Ok, I have to start by apologizing for the lateness of getting this up for you guys. I came to work on Friday trying to remember what I had to watch that day and I couldn't remember to save my life. And then I went away for an amazing weekend to a beach house that didn't have internet, so I couldn't watch the episode until this morning. So for my horrible forgetfulness, I apologize.

Secondly, I watched this episode on Hulu, so I got the shortened hour long version instead of the longer version I'm used to. I loved the episode, so we'll get to that soon, but first I have a serious bone to pick with Project Runway editors: I honestly think they've forgotten how to create a good episode of reality TV in the course of one hour. I've lamented the show's poor use of it's extended run time a lot over the years. I've said many times that the show was better and less full of superfluous crap back when it was only an hour long. But here we are and the days of the show being only an hour are behind us so we have to make the best of what we've got. And yet, wait, there's an hour long version of each episode out there. The suggestion then is that maybe there's a better version of each episode available, right? Well no because the manner in which the editors seem to make the typically 90 minute episode last for 60 minutes it to rush through the best parts of the show. Tim's visit to the workroom flies by at a breakneck speed and I didn't see him talk to everyone. The judges critiques are so fast and empty that I honestly couldn't tell you what they really thought about each of the top and bottom looks beyond the most basic impressions. In the middle of the episode, in an effort to celebrate their first 2 day challenge, the designers head up to the roof to have drinks. What happened or didn't happen, what was said or unsaid, while up there? I have no clue because all I saw was the party train heading up to the roof with alcohol and then the episode cut back to the workroom. I haven't watched the longer version of the episode yet (and I may not do so, I can't decide), so it's possible that not much is different between the two versions. I'll need you guys to tell me what I missed due to editing in the comments. But the overall effect is the same: this episode felt breathless in a way I haven't felt Project Runway has been breathless in a long time, and I didn't like it. So it feels like there is no longer any great version of this show; either the longer episodes spend more time on useless filler (like the extended scene of Kini and Fade pimping out a fridge, which still somehow found its way into the shortened version of the episode), or the shorter episodes keep the filler and lose the heart of the best parts of the show. But allow me to say once and for all that if these are the two versions of the show I have to choose from, I'm throwing my lot in with the longer cut of the episodes, and I never thought the day would come when that would be said, but I think Project Runway has finally wore me down and broken me.

Ok, deep breath, shake it off, and let's move on because I honestly did think that this was an amazing episode in a lot of ways. First there's the Avant Garde challenge, which is another of my favorite PR staples. While I agree with most people that PR doesn't really know what Avant Garde means or looks like, I still love it when this challenge comes around because it's the perfect excuse for the designers to go big. I would also posit that Avant Garde for PR has been redefined to simply mean artistic and not necessarily wearable. So this is the one challenge a season where if I can't reasonably see a woman wanting to wear the looks on the runway, that's more than fine.

And this year's Avant Garde challenge is taking place on a "Rainway." I did a quick Google search for the term Rainway and for all I can see, Project Runway is the only place where it shows up, so I'm guessing this isn't a consistent thing in the fashion industry. But even if it isn't, I think it should be. The Rainway added an interesting element to the way the designers thought about what to make, and it added a fun element of drama to the runway itself, but we'll get to that. I also really agree with Amanda's point that the innovative runway style matches well to the Avant Garde nature of the challenge itself, but I would also say this could be an interesting element for the show to use on a regular challenge about making clothes for someone in like the Pacific Northwest where it's raining so often and fabric that holds up when it gets wet might be a bigger concern. Or even someone who lives here in Florida where it rains for a couple hours everyday in the summer and our daily rainstorms tend to look like the world is ending. Either way, I say thumbs up to this development.

As a result of the Rainway, the designers are left trying to figure out ways to either embrace or avoid the rain on the runway. Do you make a regular dress and cover it in a kind of raincoat? Do you make something waterproof? It's an Avant Garde challenge, so if there's ever a moment to take a big risk and hope it pays off, it's now.

I should also note that this challenge features the latest bit of PPP (Pointless Product Placement) in the form of Samsung's new TV which gives everyone a great seat and a great view of the screen because of something or other that I don't care about. So the final look is expected to be impressive from 360 degrees. This is as opposed to the other challenges where the designer's looks are only expected to look good from the front. This also doesn't take into consideration the fact that someone sitting behind the TV probably doesn't have a good view of the screen, so the TV itself isn't even perfect from 360 degrees, but I digress. The TV PPP leads a few of the designers to get inspired by the TV itself, which I don't think was actually the point. But I could be wrong.

So everyone's off to Mood where most of the designers run straight for the Vinyl and waterproof fabrics. Sandy seems to grab every bright primary colored fabric she can find, leaving Char to laugh over the presence of more Yellow and to wonder how this will turn out. She's clearly still not over Sandy's choice of the yellow fabric which led to her being out. The group heads back to the workroom with Tim reminds everyone not to step on Swatch who appears to have put on a few pounds, or is it just me?

During the design process, we spend a lot of time with Fade talking about how uninspired he is and the best he can come up with is playing off of the Play button on a remote control. Looking at the dress on the dress form, it was clear that nothing about what he was doing was going to fit in with the Avant Garde nature of the challenge, and I found his TV based inspiration to be suspect. Also inspired by TV is Sandy and she makes a jumper that's color blocked in a manner reminiscent of the end of the broadcast day. For anyway reading this or watching the episode who's too young to know what she's talking about, Sandy was inspired by this image. There's a part of me what want's to find that charming, but I don't know where that part of me is at the moment. I think he might have gone out for coffee or something because I look at this and I think, really? In the years and years of TV, this is what you choose to get inspired by? But again, I also don't think the TV element was meant to be an actual part of the challenge, so I find her inspiration stupid and I tend to think she didn't get the point of the challenge either. So there's that.

The award for inspiration and innovation clearly goes to Sean who has the brilliantly dangerous idea to sew powdered dye into his basic white dress so the color will run on the Rainway and create an experience and a fully unique textile. It'll either work and be brilliant, or it'll fail and maybe send him home. But it's the riskiest thing we see in the episode and maybe in the entire show's history, and you can't help but to root for him.

The second day in the workroom sees an interesting element of the two day challenge: Korina wakes up and realizes she hates everything about her design. She's doing something that's inspired by Thunderbirds and her sketch looks like little more than a Thunderbird costume. I love two day challenges for a lot of reasons, and this is one of them; when you only have one day, you don't necessarily have enough time to think yourself out of your original concept. But when you have a night to sleep on it and gain a new perspective, you can look at your design with new eyes the next morning and decide to change it. And you've still got a full day to make said changes unlike when someone tries to pull out something new after Tim's visit in a one day challenge. It's a fun way to add drama to an episode without having to force or manufacture it.

On to the Rainway because I simply cannot wait any longer!!!!

Char: I like this look. I love the little hat/veil thing, and I think the color is great. There’s something odd about the way the constructed sash portion of the look seems to separate away from the rest of the dress in the back, the movement of it looks odd and almost accidental to me. But other than that I like it.

Sandy: I don’t hate it. I think the swinging pinwheels on the front are the most interesting thing about it, but I don’t understand the “point” of it. She says she wants to capture the color block lines when the service goes dead on a TV, but what do the pinwheels have to do with that? Without the pinwheels, it’s a simple silhouette under a vinyl rain coat.

Emily: I like this one for a couple reasons. 1) It’s the first look we see that isn’t afraid to show some skin. There’s something about that to me that says she wasn’t shying away from the rain. You don’t have to be completely covered and your garment doesn’t have to be shielded, embrace the rain. 2) It’s really sleek and sexy in a way I find interesting. 3) Pockets! I’m curious about how those pockets didn’t just collect a little puddle of water in the bottom? Are they open so the rain slicks down her legs? Because that’s cool!

Alexander: It’s a rain coat with petals on it. No thank you!

Fade: It’s boring. I think the fabric holds together well in the rain, and that’s impressive, but nothing about this is innovative or avant garde, or really all that interesting. I like his model’s styling a lot, though I think if her hair were down instead of in the pigtails, it would have added a nice effect in the rain.

Korina: I neither like nor hate this. I think it’s just kind of there. The play on the light is interesting and fun, but that’s about it to me. It’s another look where I don’t see much of a “point” or an artistic perspective really.

Amanda: The best thing I can say about Amanda’s look is that if no one told me it was her's, I wouldn’t have known it. It looks very different from the other things she’s designed, and I appreciate that. But I’m not impressed with it. The fact that the “eyes” were falling off means she either underestimated the effect the rain would have on the fabric, or she didn’t finish the dress well enough to withstand it, which is problematic in a two day challenge.

Kini: I want to yell and scream and jump up and down about this look. Did he ever use the term umbrella when he was talking about it? Because I must have missed that if he did. And if he didn’t, that’s too bad because that’s exactly what it looks like. The protection offered by the hat, the way the dress looks like a closed umbrella. OMG I love it all!

Sean: OH MY FUCKING EVERLOVING MERCIFUL GOD! How crazy perfect was that? This was a risk that paid off in the best way possible. I kid you not, I gasped when I saw it start to change color. This literally took my breath away. I was thinking he’ll need his model to do more than just walk if the dye in the bottom is going to work, and that moment when she stopped and spun around and the rest of it ran! Oh man, this is just amazing. If I have a criticism, it’s that I’d like to have seen a different color than the yellow on the top. But that’s really it. Man I love it!

 Kini, Sean, and Sandy are in the top, Fade, Emily, and Korina are in the bottom. In his explanation of the dress, Kini does indeed say that he was thinking of Umbrellas when he designed it. I don't know if that word was used by him at any point prior to the runway because I didn't hear it in my episode. I either missed it, or it was edited out if it happened at all, but the fact that that intentionality came through even without having to be told is pretty prefect to be honest. I don't have much to say about the judging this week because I didn't get to see much of it. It all went by so fast that I couldn't latch onto much. I will say however that the judges don't seem to have much positive to say about Sandy's look, so she seems to be more safe than in the top, but it continues the seeming trend of one person making the top three simply to round out the numbers. If anything, this episode really does prove that this season is a battle between Sean and Kini and it's just a matter of time between everyone else gets weeded out. I'm wondering if there will be 3 or 4 people showing at NYFW this year? Because if it's only 3, my guess is that this model of 2 people in the top and one person just barely scraping in will be found in the final runway too. 

Along those lines, Kini and Sean both win this challenge. The elimination of immunity gives the judges the ability to give the double win. But it's Sean's third win and Kini's first, and I can't help but to wonder if Kini finally winning isn't cheapened a bit by the fact that he has to share that win with Sean? Sean is brilliant, and Nina's point about loving the way his brain works is spot on, but is he really so much better than Kini that he's deserved 3 wins to Kini's 1? Keeping in mind that even Sandy and Amanda have each won at least twice. I'm not sure about the answer to that, but what I do know is that both Sean and Kini deserved to win this week because they were both amazing. 

Fade goes home, and I'm sad because I love him, but I'm not capable of disagreeing with that decision. I think the other point proven by this episode is that the judges just don't like Fade and Emily's aesthetics as much as I do. But Fade going home here brings us back to the issue of the Tim Gunn Save. Char has been safe on each challenge since she was brought back (and rightfully so), and Fade is one of the designers we mentioned in comments would have been more worth the save. But would/should Tim have used it here? The look Fade sends down the runway is not at all in keeping with the intention of the challenge, nor is it very impressive in its own right. But I do like his aesthetic more than Char's. It's a moot point because the Save is off the table, but it's something to think about. Also interesting to think about: this is the second episode in a row that's felt, at least to me, like classic Project Runway. I realize I might be wrong about that as I didn't see the longer version I'm guessing some of you guys saw, so feel free to disagree with me in the comments, but I think I might officially be ready to say that Project Runway is back. In as far as this show is capable of being back with its continued formatting problems.

Rain Washed Thoughts:

--Barring a huge misstep by either of them, I think the writing is on the wall that Sean and Kini are going all the way this year. Which designer(s) do you think will join them? 

--Has anyone else noticed Alexander's almost constant look of comic befuddlement? It's most noticeable on the Runway when each of his reaction shots are more like non-reaction shots. I swear it looks like no one's home in that boy's head most of the time. 

--The main elements of the shortened episode, I think, have to come from Tim's visit and the judging. So my question to anyone who watched the longer episode is did Tim meet with each of the designers? And also did each of the judges get a chance to say something about each of the top and bottom looks? Because the only looks I heard each judge check in with were Sean, Kini, and Korina's. 

--Speaking of which, Zac's increased silliness this season is starting to bug me. His pantomime of rain dancing and of boxing with Heidi were just too much for me, and not very charming. 

--One other concern I have for Sean's look is that I didn't care for the finished product. I think the majority of the appeal of this look was the entertainment factor as it walked down the rainway. When I saw it standing next to him when all was said and done, I couldn't help but to think the finished product wasn't very pretty. But that's to take nothing away from the pleasure of watching it walk down the rainway and the level of how impressed I am with him that he even though to do what he did.

--When I say that Sean gets the award for most innovative, I feel the need to point out that Kini gets the award for best construction. So it'll be interesting to see how this plays out in their collections at the end. 

Project Runway All-Stars S3 E2: "Bitten by the Fashion Bug"

Ok, guys. This is it. We got all of those silly introductions out of the way, and we only have 60 minutes (minus commercials) to get through the episode. Let's get down to business. Challenge, sewing, drama, models, makeup, runway. Let's make it snappy, people!

Let's...

Oh...

Ok, Melissa saying that the competition is crazy hard. Well, that's the usual Project Runway thing. But, within 2 minutes we're already inside the New York Museum of Natural History. Yay, we're through the product placement within the 3rd minute. And, we've even gotten Curly Moustache Guy saying "I'm going home" "I'm from Texas."

The challenge? To create, in one day, an avant garde look based on an insect, or arachnid. Today, I learned that a scorpion is actually an arachnid.  I was going to be all snarky and "scorpions aren't arachnids or insects, silly Project Runway." But, I had to double check because I hate biology, and they are arachnids!  *the more you know*

While typing all that up, we're already 8 minutes into the episode, and we're in the work room.  Jeez this episode is going so fas...wait...

We have time to fawn over work room.  With Mychael Knight commenting to us such mind-boggling information as "It's bigger than Mood" and "I love the colors." Or, Christopher Palu helpfully adding "Our tables are all set up. There's a sewing room that's attached. It's really nice." We see that the walls are done in a shade of blue-purple that has been dubbed, on Wiki at least, as either Pomp and Power or Dark Pastel Purple. But, really, its almost a grey.  And, the stripes don't help it.

We're also introduced to the QVC accessory wall that Viktor describes as "AMAZING. There's necklace, cuffs, bags, shoes..." Probably also belts, earrings, hair pieces...  You know, accessories!  And, he finishes with "Anything a girl would like" and then makes a hand motion around his neck that makes me think he has confused a girl with an octopus. No, Viktor, girls have boobs, not neck tentacles.  

Korto is still on her "Why the fuck am I here" rant.  She comments, "I got to go back to Africa, and design for their President as well as Vanessa Williams, Miss Universe, Estelle, Serena Lopez...Mama's not done, and yet I'm here?!!? Jesus fuck why did you guys bring me back here. Assholes."

So, 10 minutes in (and no commercials!), we're actually at the design...until Elena freaks out and has sweaty armpits. But, nobody gives a shit, really. "Drama, please?  Did you even see ToKen last season? You'll have to do better than having moist armpits." And, then we get to actually look at a bit of the design and tension. We get lots of shots of people cutting, and pinning, and expressing frustrations. Viktor zings us with "I'm about to turn into Elena," and is edit punctuated by Elena doing her best Gene Simmons impression. *zing!* And, NeckTat gives us this episode's next round of name droppings saying he used to design for Marilyn Manson. 

Zanna Roberts Rossi comes in and breathlessly explains that avant garde means "pushing boundraries, experimental, innovative, and super daring."  Take note. This is important. But, then Zanna speeds through everybody's critique. My favorite comment is to NeckTat, "You have a LOT of ideas." And, then to Korto, "This is pants and a jacket. How is this gonna win the challenge?"  And, she finished up with "this is really not avant garde enough. From all of you."  Note this. This is important.

Two people re-design based on Zanna's commentary. The first is Michael, who had gone completely Green, and decided to flip it and go into neutral grey with green highlights. The second is Melissa, who decided to second guess her whole outfit...but doesn't change anything?

Elena decides to lose it for the rest of the episode. Screaming, walking, crying, everything. She took the crazy challenge, and she kind of nails it without being all angry aggressive.  Somebody, give this woman a medal. We need more of her self-inflicted-psychosis high drama, and less of the angry at other people drama. I mean, she goes screaming through the sewing room, through the work room, crying the next day while finishing her dress.  It's an amazing performance, and she manages to do it without yelling at anybody. She even gets her model AND Viktor to help her finish her dress. Good job.

Fittings, product calling, etc. And, now runway. 

Special Guest judge #1: accessory designer Jennifer Meyer who turned Katie Holmes, Emma Stone and Jennifer Aniston into loyal clients. Please note that at least Katie Holmes is wearing a necklace. That is the only visible accessory in the name dropping client picture collection.

Special Guest judge #2: Friend of the family, ANYA?!!?  NOOOOOOOO!  A shoo-in!!!  Remember how we said her season was rigged?  She's back to rub it in!  Fuck you!  *ahem*

And, remember how I pointed out the definitions of avant garde, well Alyssa Milano really hammers it home by saying, "we're looking for something really unique."

And, Show:

Seth Aaron: Fetish Maid at a goth bar's amateur fashion show.  *snooooooze*

Mychael: It's a cute grey neoprene dress with a cute shawl that has some interesting cuts to it that make it green. There's nothing strange about the dress. It's a little ultra-modern. 

CMG: An interesting brown dress with a bizarre neckline that is strangling his model. It looks somewhat cheap, but he did it with $250 and in one day. It at least is risky.

Korto: "I'm gonna make a biker outfit with more things attached."

NeckTat: It's like Rorschach decided to go on a bender and ended up with a lampshade on his head, only it was too big and ended on his shoulders.  It's strange, and it's avant garde evoking war imagery and violence. I love it and hate it, which means I think it is the most interesting piece so far.

Melissa: *snooooooze*

STOP

So, up until now, it's been amateur hour.  Everything has been kind of interesting, but ultimately really snoozy. Suddenly...the runway becomes a different show.

Viktor: An strange avant garde super hero gown that looks like it may have been a costume out of Batman and Robin. It's sort of Poison Ivy if she had been white and green instead of red and green. It definitely borders costume, but it is interesting.

Palu: It's high fashion from the 1990s vision of 2050. It's boxy and techy looking. It's interesting but expected.

Irina: Gothy avant garde that reflects the darkness of her soul. It's pointy, sharp, black, gothic with runway styling and dramatic, and everything that avant garde should be taken to a dark dark place. I love the fuck out of this look.

Elena: She makes an alien androgynous, edgy look that is hard and feminine and looks like its from a rock show.

And, then we get Alyssa being a sly little minx and calling people in 3s and 2s. First three names, then "you will be critiqued." Then two names and "you will be safe." Repeat. *wink* 

But, the judging goes weird. Irina, Elena, and Mychael are on the top. CMG, NeckTat, and Melissa are on the bottom.  The criticisms for NeckTat, in particular, are almost their own Rorschach test. Isaac thinks the woman should be able to drink a martini. Anya thinks it is a backup dancer look. Georgina says the lampshade looks clumsy (correct). Alyssa thinks that the hood was appropriate for the bedroom *cracks whip*.

And, they loved Mychael's conventionally unconventional look. They liked how it looked expensive. Mychael won, and CMG loses (based on his taste level).  Seriously?  Melissa's boring-ass look doesn't lose over CMG's cheap-looking insect dress?  And, this is where we are with judging...

Stray Observations

- Palu on NeckTat's concept: "It's a cool concept...............ish?"

- Moustache: "The model gets it. She gets the avant garde. She gets the strange." Who cares?

- Seth Aaron: "9 minutes." Elena: "Wow. *screams*" Title card: 4 hours remaining.

- CMG: "I have butterflies in my stomach." *psst, Daniel. Butterflies were last season. You didn't happen to eat their butterflies, did you?*

- Viktor: "It looks like it's from the planet Elenus." *Non-zing ZING!*

- Alyssa Milano: "Bye." How cold and impersonal compared to Heidi's "Auf Weiderschoen!" Have a heart, girl.