Here I was, all set for the elimination of Michael C.I mean, there was no way the judges were going to send a cheater and saboteur who can’t sew, construct or walk and chew gum at the same time to Fashion Week, right?!
Instead, not only did Michael C. (pictured, right) advance to the finals, but the judges absolutely ADORED his black, drape-y Statue of Liberty gown.
The “I’m about to shit a brick” looks on Gretchen and April’s faces during Michael C’s glowing evaluation were my second-favorite moments of the season, just behind Ivy’s elimination. Speaking of Ivy, I think I heard her howl in pain last night as she watched the end of this episode at home. (The sounds came from below because she lives in hell.)
This week’s challenge (presented by Tim and New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg, doing a fine job acting like he gives a crap about this show) was to create a garment inspired by anything in NYC.
Mondo and April both gravitated toward the Brooklyn Bridge, Andy headed to Central Park, Gretchen felt uninspired by the Lower East Side (perhaps she should have moved on to a different location), and Michael C. picked the Statue of Liberty.
My feeling at the start that Michael C. was going home persisted throughout pretty much the entire episode. His design for his gown seemed to be, at best, way too simple and, at worst, way too literal. The fact that we later found out that he didn’t exactly know what material he was working with kind of showed why everyone thinks he’s a clown. (Though it certainly doesn’t excuse their cruel behavior.)
Michael C. wasn’t the only one struggling. Besides Gretchen’s lack of inspiration, color-happy Mondo was going to use a green sequin, but had to ditch it, partly because he took too long of a nap on the first day. (He’s right: his rivals probably wanted him to sleep a whole week.) Andy designed something that Gretchen likened to a Chinese prostitute. (She was on to something.)
Then there was April.
If you’ve read this recap before, you know I’ve been calling her out on her infatuation with black, “edgy” garments for a while now. Last night, for the first time, we saw people on the show take her to task for the sameness in her design aesthetic.
First, Tim tried to implore her to think about switching up her color (which led to her hilariously pushing back the black fabric she’d picked out). The only problem is that she ended up with black anyway. Oh but wait! The black was accompanied by…dark blue! (And was anyone else slightly freaked out that her model was done up to look exactly like her?)
Despite agreeing with every single word the judges said about her “pregnant witch” garment, (Michael Kors looked like he was going to fall asleep just talking about the black, and the asymmetry, and the zzzzz….) I don’t put all the blame at her feet. As you may have heard, April is 21 and doesn’t have as much experience as her competitors. Most importantly, the judges didn’t do her any favors by failing to call her out for something she’s done all season until last night. In the end, Michael Kors summed it up perfectly when he said, “There’s no joy in your clothes.” (And there’s no joy in April, which is why it’s hard to get broken up about her getting the boot.)
In fact, I would’ve been perfectly ok with the judges kicking out TWO people last night and showing Gretchen the door as well. Other than the skirt (which I actually kinda liked), her “midtown” Lower East Side outfit was a clunker. Then again, if we could only lose one of the Terrible Two from last night, I’m glad we ditched April because, at least, Gretchen’s astonishing ego is hilarious.
Where do I start? I love the way she pumped herself up. (Come on, Jones!) Or how about the part where she said that Michael C. reminded her of herself…five years ago. (Even when insulting people, she makes it about her.) Or how about he most egregious example, in which she complained about being “tired” and “sick of the challenges”. (Have you SEEN this show? Take a nap like Mondo if you’re sleepy). She also expressed frustration about having to “edit” herself on the one of few challenges this season that gave them an incredible amount of creative freedom. Say what you will, but her brand of crazy is compelling.
Gretchen joins Andy (who made a chic sexy/slutty outfit whose main problem was that it had NOTHING to do with Central Park) and What John Thinks favorites Michael C. and Mondo in the finale.
While I thought Michael C’s dress was lovely (and fantastic in motion), I was surprised by how much the judges were in love with it. (I thought they’d call him out for not being ambitious enough.) Then again, Michael C. seemed more concerned in creating something that he thought was beautiful and that would make his model look beautiful, and less worried about stubbornly sticking to his “point of view” and trying to tell the judges what they should think is good design.
Then there’s Mondo. Not only did he prove he could deliver without a colorful print, but he also won some major cool points by being the one designer who said Michael C. deserved to go to the finals. When asked, most designers blathered on about potential and aesthetics (and a lot of people picked April), but Mondo took Michael C’s resilience and willingness to grown, learn and improve (imagine that!) into account.
At the risk of drowning you in Mondo propaganda, the guy has proven to be the best designer and the best person on the show this season based on what we’ve seen.
So what’d you think of this episode? Where does cheap date Michael C’s impression of Michael K. rank in the “Project Runway” canon? (I have it just one notch underneath Santino’s classic Tim Gunn impersonation – it was pretty damn good!) What’d you think of Christian Siriano as a guest judge? (He seemed a little off on his critiques, but that served as a great reminder that guest judges have never seen these people’s work before.) Finally, there’s no way Mondo doesn’t win, right?
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