Top Chef - S5E6 Power Rankings

Hey, all!

With apologies, I need to beg off on the rankings this week. We're still traveling, and I haven't been able to do any research or rewatch episode six since it first aired three weeks ago. But I'll be back home in time for tomorrow night's episode, and rest assured, the rankings will return at full strength next week, and I'm sure we'll have much to discuss.

Comments

[Jason]

And what, pray tell, am I supposed to look forward to at work today? Unacceptable!

Seriously though...safe travels...tonight's episode looks like a good one. Thanks for the note Dom.

[matthew]

Ditto Jason's comments. As much as I look forward to the work-day diversion, I wish you a safe journey home.

[anon man]

How dare you bail on this service you provide free of charge!!! Have a good trip in my native land (assuming you're still in NorCal).

As an unwanted service, I offer my rankings without explanation, other than the groupings I've put them in:

Contenders:
1. Stefan
2. Hosea
3. Jeff
4. Fabio

Possibles
1. Leah
2. Radhika
3. Jamie

Wild Cards
1. Ariane
2. Carla

Hanging on
1. Gene
2. Melissa

[Sean]

Where do I get a refund?!?!?!? :>)
Safe travels, I'm looking forward to tonight's episode and tomorrow's ;) rankings!

[mncharm]

I also want my money back.

[Skillet Doux]

Any and all payments made to Skillet Doux will be fully refunded as a result of this week's lack of power rankings.

:-)

[Karen]

I have watched the Christmas episode a couple times and I noticed they don't know Radhika's quick fire. Any ideas why?

[jh]

Here's a recent article from the Atlanta Journal Constitution about Blais's new restaurant, Flip:

http://www.accessatlanta.com/restaurants/content/restaurants/reviews/stories/2009/01/06/flip_burger_atlanta.html?cxntlid=aa-hp-rtr

Is the lack of power rankings a good way to start off the new year?? :-P

[Ed T.]

The show tread water that last episode - so why shouldn't the Power Rankings?

Besides, what *I* want to know is who is the unfortunate lump of biomass who is the recipient of that "...the bland leading the bland" comment from Judge Torquemada?

~EdT.

[babyarm]

I guess Ted Allen is done with his knockoff of Good Eats and is now doing a knockoff of Top Chef. Debuts soon. Called "Chopped". Probably puts an end to the hopes of ever seeing him again on TC.

I guess that also means BOTNFNS is mercifully over. Maybe.

[anon man]

NFNS might be gone forever becuase, with the exception of Guy, none of the other people who have won the show have put together a show that anyone seemed to want to watch more than once.

[forthright fattie]

I've been obsessively checking for the rankings, but at least we'll get a new episode tonight! Also looking forward to the recap of holiday eating--will live vicariously through it as with the serrano in the previous post.

[Doug]

Because anon man cannot have the only say here this week, I'll offer my rankings too (I'll keep his format though):

Contenders:
1. Stefan
2. Jeff
3. Jamie

Possibles
4. Leah
5. Hosea
6. Fabio
7. Radhika

Wild Cards
8. Ariane

Hanging on
9. Carla
10. Gene
11. Melissa

[Annee]

personal rankings:

Contenders:

1. Jamie
2. Stefan
3. Jeff
4. Radhika

possibles:
5. Leah
6. Hosea
7. Fabio

Wild Cards:
8. Arianne
9. Carla
10. Gene (Hey he might make a comeback)

hanging on.

11. Melissa

[anon man]

Doug: Thanks. In posting I was hoping to get a discussion going in Dom's absence. Generally could have been where you are too, but the major difference is Jamie. (i.e, I almost put Carla in the good-bye category, probably over-inflated Fabio because of my love for Italian cooking) I've soured on Jamie. She's obviously very talented, but talent alone doesn't win. Looking back over the seasons, how many very talented chefs bombed out (and not even counting Cliff's antics)? Tre, Jen, Lee Ann all come to mind. Sometimes the best chefs fail at the worst moments. I could totally see her doing something cool that fails and she's gone. This week's "wow me" challenge will be very telling for all of them.

And, randomly, my name is actually Doug too, but I'll stick with "anon man"...

[Megan H.]

As a random note, Ted Allen is doing a second season of Food Detectives, as well as hosting the new show, Chopped. (Which I am planning on giving a watch, just to see, although it seems more of an Iron Chef variation than a Top Chef variation.) I also remember seeing a while ago something about how they were extending their deadline for submissions for the next season of NFNS, and then I haven't seen anything else about it. Which, to me, does not bode well.

Ok, sorry we can go back to Top Chef now. :)

[Jason]

You know, with the failings this season has had so far, it has at least one thing going for it. Pretty much all of the chefs who have been kicked off have been ranked near the bottom in Dom's (and seemingly the consensus of the group here as a whole) rankings....looks like the second half of this season could turn out to be quite interesting.

[Independent George]

My rankings:

1. Jamie
2. Stefan
3. Leah
4. Jeff
5. Radhika
6. Ariane
7. Hosea
8. Fabio
9. Carla

This season seems much more balanced than last year; this weeks double elimination got rid of the last of the bottom contenders, and there's no Hung or Richard at the top. That should make for an interesting Restaurant Wars; we probably won't see anything on the level of S4's Richard/Stephanie/Antonia, but there shouldn't be a massive failure, either.

[Steve]

A slight twist on the rankings in this thread...This is a categorization - where they stand in terms of talent and coming through so far, with consideration given that their experience on the show and drive to win this close to the final will discourage major mistakes they have made before.

Likely Final Four:

Fabio (acknowledging tendency to fumble when overconfident)
Jamie (acknowledging tendency to fumble when taking risks)
Jeff (acknowledging tendency to fumble due to his quirkiness)
Stefan

Excellent but not Creative Enough:

Ariane

Some Hits, Some Misses, Some Passable

Hosea
Leah
Radhika

Love Her, Please Come Through, Twinkles but Doesn't Shine (Likely to Go Next)

Carla