Top Chef - S6E12 Power Rankings

Holy cow, the Bocuse d'Or challenge seems like a lifetime ago!

Maybe it's just me, between the usual craziness, a holiday weekend and some big news (with blog implications -- more on this shortly), but I think I managed to have a week or so in there where Top Chef didn't even cross my mind. Crazy, I know. And don't worry, I won't let it happen again.

I don't know how anybody could have not loved this episode. Anybody who isn't a food geek, anyway. You've got a couple of highly sophisticated challenges, some killer guests (including THE killer guest), some incredibly smart commentary, and the weak link is the one who put out a pretty mean-looking Lamb with Piquillo Canapés, Yogurt Foam, Carrot Puree, Arugula Coulis, and Date & Truffle Jus.

Which leads to the big news, of course, that being that our (mostly) season-long top four have, in fact, all survived to make a murderer's row for the finals. Even Jen, who looked like she had mentally thrown in the towel, managed to get her groove back. The coolest part? I almost don't care who goes home tonight. Yeah, I'd be sad if Kevin got the axe. But even if he does? Still a spectacular trio for the finale. Basically, no matter who's cut before the big dinner, we're guaranteed an incredible lineup next week. And that's really exciting.

Here's where I wrote a whole spiel on what puts a Top Chef winner over the... um... top. But somehow, it seemed that it would be more appropriate going into the finale. So let's do one more traditional Power Rankings before shifting gears a little bit for the final installment.

The power rankings are not purely a prediction of who is most likely to win, or an assessment of last episode's dishes, or a reflection of the contestants' historical performance, but rather a nebulous amalgam of all three, combined with a little bit of gut feeling, to provide a relative measure of current awesomeness.

Wins

Top

Bottom

1 Kevin Quickfires 4 7 0 Last Week: 1 Eliminations 5 9 1 At one point in his blog this season, Blais had a good way of putting something I've tried to say before with a little less eloquence. Winning contestants on Top Chef are those who know how to mold the challenge to their style and skills (and even in paraphrasing him, I'm sure I've butchered the prose). This week couldn't have been a more perfect example. Working as somebody who produces simpler, at times rustic food in this crowd, surrounded by chefs who turn out highly refined and often flashy cuisine day in and day out, two challenges like these should have been his "oh s**t" moment -- a sharp stick aimed directly at the soft underbelly of an otherwise well-armored contestant. And yet he brought his skills and style to the table, and despite his shortcomings in an episode that challenged him, he made the elimination his and took home yet another win (not to mention some serious cash money). Bottom line, dude can't even screw up the stuff he's supposed to. No surprise here, number one again.

2 Michael V. Quickfires 1 3 1 Last Week: 2 Eliminations 3 9 1 Mike, on the other hand, managed to kind of screw up something he wasn't supposed to. Barring some quickfire intro footage we didn't get so see (read: my comment here is pretty much meaningless because of course there's critical information they're not showing us), I do kind of feel for Mike a bit on the quickfire. If he was going to be dinged for not producing a ballotine, he should have simply been told to make a ballotine. But it sounds like it was a solid dish. His performance in the elimination challenge was an interesting departure, not in terms of style, but in terms of quality. One of the big knocks on wild, flashy MG-influenced cuisine is that it's soulless and often lacking flavor. And while it's a lame generalization that doesn't apply to the mature practitioners of many of these new techniques, there's no denying that too many chefs get caught up in the style at the expense of substance. What has set Mike apart through much of this competition is that unlike previous MG-heavy chefs who have been magnets for that criticism, Mike's food has been not only flashy but delicious, regularly wowing the palates of judges who can see through the pizzazz. Perhaps he tried to do too much. Perhaps, for once, he got caught up in the flash. But this is the first time I can remember him being dinged for style over substance this season. A weakness going into the finals? Doubtful. Too strong of a track record. I'm keeping him at number two.

3 Bryan Quickfires 0 3 3 Last Week: 3 Eliminations 3 7 0 Why am I always at a loss for what to say about Bryan? Maybe because his techniques are grounded in such traditional flavors. I don't know. But after a few very conservative weeks, this episode seemed to mark the return of the wow, if only just a little bit of it. I still think he needs to recapture a little more of that early season playfulness if he wants to sneak past Mike and Kevin, but it's in there... and it would seem that the hiatus can only give him the opportunity to think a little more about bringing some really distinctive dishes to the table, and letting it all hang out in his final episode or two. Going forward, I bet we see more guacamole macaroon and deconstructed béarnaise, and fewer simple meats and purees. And I think it will serve him well.

4 Jennifer C. Quickfires 4 6 3 Last Week: 5 Eliminations 1 5 3 If she had another week of mojo-reclaiming before the finals, I might have had to consider her for number three. But after such a rough stretch, while I'm thrilled to see her back, all isn't forgiven just that quickly. What we've learned, though, is that our suspicions at the beginning of the season perhaps weren't so ridiculous. Of course, she can handle meat. She pulled down big props and nearly a win for her flat iron steak in the deconstruction challenge. But that's pretty much the extent of her meaty accolades. It took seafood to bring her back to the land of the living, and she came right out and said it herself. That's her strength. There are worse angles to take to the finals than seafood specialist, and it's looking like she shouldn't be afraid to ride it out. When she's working with anything briny, she's Jennifer Norris again. I say don't fight it. Embrace it.

5 Eli Quickfires 2 3 2 Last Week: 4 Eliminations 0 4 2 He had his smartass moments, but Eli left with class. Of course, losing out to competition like this makes it easy to be gracious, I suppose, but it's nice to see that the cocky punk can tone it down and get serious about the experience and the opportunity he had and the respect for his fellow contestants when the situation calls for it. Really, going into this episode, Eli had to hope for one of two things. He had to hope that somebody blew it, or he had to hope that Jen continued her nosedive. But there's no shame in making it this far, and he knows it. And though it gets lost sometimes, it's worth noting that he's a very, very young chef. Of course, Kevin only has a year on Eli, but they can't all be Kevin now, can they? In any case, point being, it was Eli's time and he knew it and he can and does hold his head high on his way out the door.

It's time for Napa and the finals, baby!!! Here's where we get to laugh about how everybody watched themselves on TV, then went out and got a haircut. Let's see what's on deck...

WARNING : MINOR EPISODE THIRTEEN SPOILERS AHEAD

UGGGH... freaking catering challenge. And it sounds like a big one. Quickfire sounds great. Grape theme, Napa Valley, wine train... perfect. But 300 portions of two dishes in five hours with some kind of ingredient limitation? Mike says it. This is setting them up for failure. And even though I stand by my assertion that the finale will be great no matter who goes home, you hate to see somebody come so close to the final meal and then go down the way I'm sure somebody will end up going down. Then again, my preview pessimism has turned out to be mostly overblown this season. Here's hoping that trend continues.

Discuss!!!

Comments

[timothy]

It is going to be a fun finale. Tomorrow's episode has the potential to be disappointing because in some ways this entire season has been about getting these top four to the end. Now that we are there, I want to enjoy their presence in Napa for awhile. I think, like you, I will be content with any of them in the final three, but the flip side of that is I will be sorry to see any of them eliminated tomorrow. I guess I am just hoping to see them all put out good food and solid effort.

[gilmore]

This will be one big echo chamber - glad the big four made it to the finals, hope Kevin makes it past this week, whoever goes home will be missed, but hey, three great chefs will be left.

300 portions - does that doom a fish chef?

[Jon Olsen]

Embracing Jennifer Norris is a Schedule I narcotic in the United States, and a felony in sixty-three countries.

Question: what would be more disappointing?
A crappy catering challenge that axes someone after being setup for failure?

OR a producers' copout where they change their minds and let everyone thru to the finals? (examples of this behavior include when they let all those people thru on Project Runway for the six-way Bryant Park show a couple seasons back)

[rab01]

"freaking catering challenge"

But, isn't that pretty much always the penultimate EC?

S2 - luau-inspired dishes
S3 - Elk
S4 - Pork
S5 - the New Orleans ball

[Naomi]

A cup of coffee, a nursing baby and Power Rankings. Great way to start my day. Thanks, Dom :-) Can't wait for tonight!!

[Skillet Doux]

Naomi... my pleasure... and a belated congratulations on the little one :-)

rab01... absolutely correct. And it bugs me every time :-) But what sounds like 600 composed plates strikes me as especially onerous, even when compared to historic penultimate ECs.

[Danny]

In terms of personality and food I would least like to eat of the four, I'd want Mike V. to go. But a brother vs. brother finale is just too delicious and I suspect that is what we will get. That leaves Jennifer and Kevin. I can't imagine any scenario in which Jennifer beats Kevin.

I think that we all may have overestimated Jennifer. This was mostly based on the armed forces challenge. Thinking about this now, the other chefs knew that Jen wasn't going to win and she wasn't going to lose (immunity). They had every reason to cooperate with her. Imagine if they had been told that if there was a leader, they would be very much in the running to win. Would they have cooperated as much? Just wondering.

I've loved this season but I do miss a sense of surprise. How amazing was it last season when Carla came out of nowhere and ended up (justifiably) in the top 3? We've all said this would be the top 4 from practically the first episode. Just wish there would have been an element of surprise and a shake-up. And yet, all 4 deserve to be where they are. Can't wait to see tonight (7 PM PST on the east coast HD feed!!!).

[Danny]

Oops, I forgot to say how happy I am for you Naomi! Boy or girl? Name? Details please.

[garik16]

Rab01, Dom, the question is really whether the catering challenge is interesting and worthy of this stage of the competition.

Case in Point: Season 4, where the pig challenge was terrific and really showcased Blais' and Stephanie's talents.

Catering challenges tend to mean either less involved plating or smaller portions, but if done well, the results are fun to watch.

[paula]

Danny: No, don't try to diminish Jen's moment of greatness! Her performance in the Air Force challenge was brilliant, especially when you consider how early in the season it was, how little they all knew each other, and how she refused to be delegated to that "helper" position Mike I. tried to give her and instead ran the whole damn show. That was a breathtaking moment in TC history, IMO, because that episode was the one that clearly set up the distinction between this season and every other. The way she ran that kitchen, and the way (almost) everyone performed under her leadership, was a thing of beauty. I remember thinking back to the stupid Foo Fighters Thanksgiving episode and realizing this was a night-and-day scenario.

Anyway, I'm glad the best 4 chefs made it this stage, but I definitely want to see one of them go home tonight and not have a cop-out 4-way finale. I just don't want it to be Kevin who goes home, because I think he's the most deserving of the title this year.

[EdT.]

It's nice to have you back, Dom... seems like such a long time ago (which is what I was thinking as I was writing up my analysis.)

I'm surprised you didn't comment on the tribute to Eli's performance Richard Blais posted on his Bravo blog (http://www.bravotv.com/top-chef/blogs/richard-blais/homer). It was an interesting insight into a cheft that was largely given the smartass edit during the season.

And yes, 600 composed portions in 5 hours, with a restricted list of ingredients, just seems wrong.

~EdT.

[EdT.]

Oops - that URL is http://www.bravotv.com/top-chef/blogs/richard-blais/homer - looks like a few extra characters got included.

~EdT.

[Bart]

Nice job on the rankings, as always.

I think Bryan should be placed above Mike - he performed better in the quickfire, and although he stumbled in the Bocuse elimination challenge, he showed a mental poise that far outstrips Mike's talents.

Mentally, I'd have to say that Bryan is in a better place than Mike.

[Terry]

Best season ever.

[rab01]

Garik, I agree with you 100%. The real question is whether the challenge is interesting and brings out the best in the contestants.

To me, the penultimate catering challenge seems to often outshine the finale. Marcel's Pineapple "poi"; Dale L.'s controlled chaos with Elk; Richard's soda-braised pork; Stephanie's chicharones (sp?) after Dale T left the meat out of the fridge; Hosea showing that he had spent the entire downtime studying New Orleans' cuisine; Carla's and Jeff's amazing dishes ...

[babyarm]

I read the blog twice and maybe my reading comprehension is poor (likely), but what was this in reference to?

"a holiday weekend and some big news (with blog implications -- more on this shortly)"

---------------

I'm not sure this was the greatest season ever. Really from a likable + quality chef season this one falls short of both 3 and 5. For pure food yeah this one rises above all the other seasons, but they brought in people with established and well recognized careers this time around.

Like it or not there is still a "reality" element to this show that pays the bills in some form or another. Ultimately to me this season with much better food wasn't as overall entertaining as 5, which probably had the worst culinary element to it of all 6 seasons to date. In addition, no compelling personality really developed over time. Kevin is great, but after that who will endure long term favorably?

When this season is looked back upon people will remember nothing except perhaps how rude they were to Robin, a bunch of crazy MG dishes, and a Veg challenge that most competent home cooks could have won over the pro chefs. Meh.

[ally]

Jon Olsen: Regarding Project Runway, only three made it to the final showing for judging purposes. The others were there to throw people off so that the final three were not known to the general public. They often have more designers show a collection than actually are being judged for the finals.

Having said that, I have also wondered if they will cop out and have all four contestants at the end of Top Chef this season. But I bet they won't.

[SorchaRei]

The season Jon Olsen is thinking of is that one with Uli, Michael, Jeffrey, and Laura, where instead of cutting to final 3 (plus decoy) for Bryant Park, they declined to do that last cut and went to Bryant Park with four designers still in the mix (with no decoys, but when they showed ahead of the air date, the online conversation was all about trying to figure out which of the four was "the decoy").

I'm absolutely in Paula's camp on Jen's performance at the Air Force Base. I don't think it's fair to say that they "knew" she couldn't win that challenge -- what it seemed like to me was that Mike I (afraid she might win the challenge) tried to marginalize her to "helper" and she turned it into a triumph that, in fact, helped all the chefs produce better food for their diners. Blais seemed to agree in his blog, too.

[anon man]

I'll hold off decreeing this the best season ever until the season is over. My favorite to date was Season 4 as the best in terms of combined food & drama/interest. I think this one's better in overall food, but as someone else pointed out, its a little dull other than the Robin thing. Best drama might have been last season except for the Leah/Hosea J-date waste of time.

[Amanda P.]

The guy from the Air Force challenge is on Jeopardy tonight!

I just thought people here might appreciate that.

[Naomi]

Thanks for the congrats :-)

It's a boy. My 4th boy actually (yes, I'm insane).

His name is Finn and no, I don't watch Glee (I found out about a week after he was born that there's a character on the show named Finn). :-)

[hayamyma]

What I loved about Jennifer Norris' performance in the Air Force challenge was the way it perfectly embodied what Tom and Gail and other judges have said about the chef being the leader of the kitchen. Jen did a great job of keeping people who hadn't worked together before in a wild & crazy kitchen setting on task and producing great food. Much as I think Mike cooks interesting food, I would love for Jen and Kevin and Bryan to go forward tonight.

[Joe S.]

Wow, the Bravotv.com site crashed right after the episode:

We currently experiencing technical difficulties. Please come back in a few minutes.

[Joanna]

No spoilers, because I know it hasn't aired yet everywhere...

but that was AWESOME. I was on the edge of my seat until the last second. I'll have one of everything, please.

[Anne]

Now THOSE are vegetarian dishes. I am going to play romantic music and light candles and lock myself in a room alone with Bryan's ravoli.