Top Chef - S7E11 Power Rankings

This week's Top Chef Power Rankings need to go home. They're annoying. They're sloppy. They have no tech-neek.

Seriously, I'm not feeling the mojo here. Week after week of throwing darts. Remember early in the season when I was assuming just a couple more episodes would give us some clarity? Then a couple more? Then a couple more? One elimination to the finals (and Singapore!), and things are pretty much as murky as they've ever been.

Reading around, I'm catching a big negative vibe about this episode, which puzzles me a little bit. The quickfire's a straightforward inspiration/ingredient exercise without any stupid restrictions. Some tighter tie-ins with the idioms themselves would have been nice, but hey, decent-looking food. And in the elimination, with the exception of Amanda, it sounds like their issues were relatively minor, which is more than we can say for some previous sports-type challenges.

I don't know. Like a lot of folks I'm struggling with this season. I know I'm not enjoying it as much, but I'm having a hard time putting a finger on precisely why. Mostly I'm trying to determine if this season is as weak as so many seem to feel, or if it's just that season six was so exceptional and so fresh in our minds. It's been pinned on the skill of the cast, the personality of the cast, the challenges, the editing... really, what hasn't been blamed? I should probably save this for the season postmortem. We're still too close.

In the meantime, let's determine ourselves some finalists!

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 Tiffany Quickfires 2 2 2 Last Week: 1 Eliminations 2 8 0 While I can't say either of her dishes screamed, "Send me to the finals!" to me, to her credit, Tiffany did manage to successfully navigate two ingredients that have killed or at least tripped up a crowd of other mere mortals who have dared to use them in the Top Chef kitchen -- canned beans and Italian sausage. Both of those always seem to get people in trouble. And yet she managed to go unnoticed in the QF and get top mention in the elimination. I feel very strange about having her in the top spot. I'm repeating myself a bit, but I look over what she's been cooking the past couple of episodes and none of it looks like winning material to me. Respectably surviving material, absolutely. But if the food she's cooked the past two episodes -- delicious though I'm sure it is -- ends up making her the champion in three episodes... well, I think that'll confirm just about every negative thing everybody's been saying about this season.

2 Ed Quickfires 2 3 3 Last Week: 4 Eliminations 2 5 2 I feel equally weird -- if not more so -- about Ed inhabiting the number two spot, for much the same reasons. He's coming on strong and winning like crazy all of a sudden, but again, is this really the food you see winning Top Chef? The arancini at the ballpark were a great call and apparently he nailed them, but still, arancini, straight-up spring gnocchi, inside-out chicken cordon bleu... all things I'd be perfectly tickled to eat, but that's not what we're judging here. But he's hot, so in a field this tight, he's number two. And now that I've been the curmudgeon, let me point out that I think those arancini look really great. A smart choice, appealing to a ballpark munchy food kind of aesthetic while kicking up the refinement a couple of notches, easy to finish on site... I think that dish deserves a lot more respect than it's getting from a lot of people. Still doesn't look like a Top Chef winning dish.

3 Angelo Quickfires 3 6 1 Last Week: 2 Eliminations 1 3 2 Despite the fact that I've busted him down to number three, I'm not so sure I buy this "Angelo's season-long decline" narrative. I mean, the guy hadn't had a bottom appearance until two episodes back. He's had a rough couple of episodes and he definitely seems a little frazzled. The guy who owns an Asian sandwich shop managed to screw up an Asian sandwich. He knew the buns were wrong, but instead of getting creative he decided to ignore his better judgment and press on -- a mistake I doubt he makes in the first half of the season. And I'm always dismayed to see anybody use tilapia, the boneless skinless chicken breast of the sea. But he only has to make one more cut and he gets time to go back to reread the complete Tony Robbins collection, say a few prayers in front of his four star chef shrine and develop a few more dishes. My hunch is still that as long as he makes the finals, he comes back strong and leaves everybody else in the dust. If I'm a betting man, my money's on Angelo in the finals. But he has to get there first. Oh, and one last side note on Angelo. If anybody was concerned that his exclusively Asian approach was going to wear thin, extended JT this week pretty much put that to bed. Padma started to raise the issue, and Tom jumped right to his defense (as he should). As long as his food is good, the Asian focus isn't going to bother Tom, and he's bulldoggish enough that I doubt he'll let it influence any decisions.

4 Kevin Quickfires 1 5 3 Last Week: 5 Eliminations 1 4 5 This one I went back and forth on about a dozen times. In fact, I just switched three more times since writing that first sentence. But since it's close enough that I could pretty much identify anything as what I used to put daylight between them, I'm going to go with this: Kevin's hits seem to be more distinctive. That's it. They've both had some success, they've both had a great deal of failure. But we're getting close to the finish line and dishes like the reimagined vitello tonnato, the vibrant restaurant wars halibut and -- see if you still remember this one -- the lamb with meyer lemon and pistachio marmalade just seem more distinctive and unique. Granted, those have been the exceptions. But at least they're memorable ones.

5 Kelly Quickfires 2 3 4 Last Week: 3 Eliminations 2 4 3 I think that Kelly, like Angelo, will show stronger than her current position indicates should she make the finals. The more I think about it, the more I think her issue might simply be one of range. She's never had Ethiopian. She had no idea what flavors are in kung pao chicken. Both of which are more extreme examples, but even with less ethnic dishes, she just seems like the kind of chef who really needs to be within her narrow range or she falls down. She's not afraid to stretch herself, and the competition requires that you do, but she should probably avoid it as much as possible.

6 Amanda Quickfires 1 3 4 Last Week: 6 Eliminations 0 2 5 This week we got one of those long-overdue eliminations, though the usual annoyance was, I think, tempered by three factors. First, though she made a lot of mistakes, she also had a few big hits and showed that perhaps all that was standing between her and a much stronger showing was a little experience. Second, the field in general is weaker this year and she didn't seem quite so out of place. And third, and perhaps most importantly, there were no delusions of grandeur here. She knew it was time to go, and even seemed to feel, as most of us do, that she's been in over her head for a few weeks now. So while she certainly doesn't need my permission to do so, I think she can go home with her head held high.

Historically speaking, the last episode before the finals always seems to be the one where those who have been getting a little tired and sloppy suddenly snap to attention. Nothing like the knowledge that you're just one elimination away from a nice long break and the finals to coax out your best.

WARNING : MINOR EPISODE TWELVE SPOILERS AHEAD

So the sneak peek videos have cleared things up... somewhat. The quickfire has absolutely nothing to do with NASA. It's a straight wine challenge, though whether that means the wine goes in the food or simply has to pair with it or both is unclear. What I said about Kelly working in her comfort zone applies here, I think, but the others could just as easily rock the house, of course. For the elimination, they are, indeed, cooking space food. We see them being told that their dishes will have to "[follow] the guidelines for dining in zero gravity." What that means will determine whether this is a reasonable final regular season challenge or a ridiculous one. Here's hoping for the former.

Discuss!

Comments

[Steve F.]

Yay!

My vote is with "less talented chefs." Sorry. But the creativity factor seems very much lacking. A dull season.

[Danny]

Thanks for all the hard work and the thought you put into the Power Rankings. I think the past two seasons have been problematic. Last season, having some of the chefs being acclained (Michelin star, Beard nominees) deadened the season - you pretty much knew who the final four were going to be from the get go so it was just a matter watching the others inevitably being cut one by one. It did get the show an Emmy!!!! Congrats.

This season was more about straight forward cooking with most of the chefs being on the same level in terms of recognition and acclaim. Problem is, that with so many contestants you didn't really get to see a lot of what they were doing.

I think the challenges have been lackluster. I don't want to watch them cook a turkey in a toaster oven but each week seems to be basically "make a dish".

I confess to an unpopular admission. I loved Season 1's gas station challenge. I liked the show from the get go but this was the challenge that got me thoroughly addicted. I was amazed that so many of them were able to make delicious dishes only using. for the most part, gas station market products.

I miss Lee Ann. She knew how to make a great challenge. I don't like it when they are supposed to make something amazing in 15 minutes but this season they are given too much time.

The best TC season will be one that is able to put together talented chefs who have not yet received some level of fame and put them together with interesting challenges - not ones that make things dreadful (like Chopped - "your ingedients are hickory tree bark, eel, cinnamon, licorice sticks and grapefruit juice").

Still, I love the show. And I can't tell you enough how what you write and the insights you give add to the pleasure of watching the show.

[Daniel]

It's tempting to put together a laundry list of the reasons *I* think this season is lackluster, but it also seems a bit silly just to repeat the same things the rest of you are saying. One note I'd like to add to the chorus is what I see as a relative dearth of defined 'signature styles' this season compared to prior seasons.

To name a few chefs who have stood out over the seasons as having a particular 'take' - Marcel and Michael with MG, Dave and gay-Dale with explosive flavors, Hung and Bryan with his pristine execution...Kevin, Richard, Ilan...I could go on, but you get the point. In every season, we've had contestants in the top and even the middle who created dishes that might as well have had their name stamped on them.

I don't see that so much this season - with the exception of Angelo, a lot of these dishes feel kindof inter-changable to me - given a stew, I'd probably just assume it was Tiffany's, but given two stews, I'd have no idea which was hers, and they feel more like a go-to preparation rather than a signature technique.

So maybe that's it - for all the irritating editing aimed at characterizing these contestants, I'm not really getting a whole hell of a lot of idiosyncratic character coming out of their food...and while I'm in no way dismissing the other factors, this does feel like the dominant one for me.

[timothy]

I hate to say this, but I am starting to believe that while all the above-mentioned factors may be contributing to the lackluster nature of this season, the real problem is just that Top Chef has gone on for seven seasons and the magic is gone. There are not that many television shows I can think of that have been good for seven seasons. I won't list them, but when I consider my favorite shows of the forty years of my TV watching life, the best have bowed out by season seven; if they have not, they've begun to get stale. I watch Top Chef to see people come up with imaginative and inspiring dishes and also to see a little bit of the tension and drama associated with talented artists pushed to the limits of their abilities. In a lot of ways, everything that I could hope to see has already been presented in seasons 1-6. Season seven isn't terrible to me. I still enjoy watching. But it's really familiar, and I am not surprised any more. I feel about season seven of Top Chef the way I feel about season 20 of the Simpsons: I am glad it's there, and I am comforted by familiar pleasures, but I find myself pushing an obvious and nagging thought out of my head every time I watch: the best days are behind it.

[mncharm]

I think the quality of chefs has been the biggest factor -- I look at these people and so few have distinctive styles that make me say "I want to go eat at their restaurant."

While the competitive balance is fun, it isn't enough to outweigh the fact that the food just doesn't look all that special.

Compare this last episode to season five's tailgate party -- I feel as if the food served there, while keeping within the spirit of a traditional tailgate party, was creative and certainly appeared delicious.

Meanwhile: a meatball sandwich? What ballpark can't you get a meatball sandwich at? Tuna tartare? Who the hell wants raw fish on a hot day at the ballpark?

Blah.

Here's hoping for a bounceback eighth season.

[Bart]

I think Tiffany's success (and Ed's, for that matter) is that while their food might look relatively plain to us on TV, they probably pack a mouthful of flavor. Think Fabio's roast chicken - anyone can make a roast chicken, but it takes skill to make the roast chicken of the year. Or from that same season, Arianne's fish with roasted pineapples. Most of us here can make it, sure, but it simply tasted better than most of the other dishes in that challenge.

Anyway, I kind of enjoy the cheesy, corny challenges ("use a pack of slim jims and a gallon of milk to make Thanksgiving dinner. You have 15 minutes. Go!"). But, and this is very important, I like them early in the season. Having a wacky challenge toward the end of the season seems a bit unfair when the stakes are higher and a legit contender for the title can get knocked out because he/she couldn't make a dish work with a bag of Cheetos or something.

[Steve]

I think I may be with Timothy on this... I keep watching, but Top Chef is tired.

And, at the end, I can't see myself spending big bucks to eat at any of this year's cheftestants' restaurants.

It's supposed to be about the food, plus a bit more. We had a wonderful meal at Sprout in July. Top chef styling and great food. And when things get less crazy there, we'll go to Girl and The Goat. I watched Dale, Sarah, and Stephanie cook and thought, "I want to eat that!" This year, not so much.

As to my rankings, I think it's between Ed, Angelo, and Kelly. Ed, because he seems to be able to keep himself focused. Angelo, because I think he has real talent, but his confidence is based on a lot of bluster and when it fails, he fails. Kelly cooks with the best if she can manipulate the challenge into her comfort zone.

[Anon Man]

That's a fair ranking. Other than Tiffany, I won't be shocked no matter who goes home tonight. And, with Tiffany, I would really only be shocked if she had some Antonia-esque technical screw up, since she has showed well done, if not original, food. Anyone else, who knows.

I'm still enjoying the season and watching the creative process is always a good hour, but, I can't say I have any great feelings of support or antipathy for any of the chefs. (I liked Kenny, but in retrospect, I think I just thought his Alpha Dog shtick was good television fun.)

The reason(s) as to why this season isn't as good are probably too complicated to determine from the outside. The loss of Leann is probably one, the more blunt force editing (maybe some personnel changes at the Elves?), and some intangible about the personality among the contestants (both in terms of food and mentality) that I can't quite put my finger on, are all likely problems. Maybe the issue is that all of the contestants this year came in and were professionals. Maybe if they did all sous chefs next season (younger, less mature, but also willing to take risks since they aren't viewing the show as a 15 week commercial for their place), the viewing might be more interesting.

[Independent George]

My opinion of this season can best be summarized by a famous philosopher:

With enemies you know where they stand, but with Neutrals? Who knows? It sickens me... What makes a man go neutral? Lust for gold? Power? Or was he just born with a heart full of neutrality?

I don't think this season was terrible, either in terms of food or personalities. I actually kind of dig the food - I know a lot of people are bored by Tiffany, Ed, and Kelly's food, but having experienced a bout of fine dining fatigue this year, and I'm a little more favorably inclined - but, as Dom has mentioned, none of it really looks distinctive. It's not a bad thing, but in television terms, it's kind of... neutral.

[Skillet Doux]

IG... I'll put the rankings on beige alert.

[Marlissa]

Great stuff to ponder. And while the season has not been awful - and I really don't have anything against any of the chefs here - the food itself has been a bit of a letdown. Yes we were spoiled beyond belief in Season 6, but even in Season 5, which a lot of people considered a bust at the time, there were quite a lot of dishes that looked interesting and like something I'd like to try. I can just about count on one hand the dishes from this season I remember and would like to try - after 12 episodes, that's dismaying. Agreed tenfold that no one save Angelo has shown anything approaching a distinctive style. And his food generally looks good but it's not like I'd make a pilgrimage to his restaurant. If I had the means, I would travel just to eat at either Voltaggio's restaurant. Ditto Kevin. Ditto Blais (actually those two could be on the same trip - bonus!). And I am going to Stephanie's new place next month and CAN'T WAIT! Sadly I've found it impossible to work up that much enthusiasm for anyone this season. I do wonder, if this crew had happened in Season 3 instead of Season 7 if we'd all be singing a different tune?

[ally]

I think this crew happened in Season 2 food-wise. So I think that *any* season with this crew would be boring. I don't know which season is worse - these people are more ho hum bitchy whiney than out and out asstastic. From a "teevee" perspective maybe the Marcel-Cliff episode at least kept us tuned in for the next season?

[Jake]

Part of the problem is that this season pales in comparison to last season, which was terrific on so many levels. I don't think this season is any worse than a few of the other less good seasons we've had, though. It could just be a blip. If they can't put together a better season next time around, then I'll worry it's a trend.

I think in addition to all of the above -- chefs (skill level, personalities), challenges, editing, etc. -- Eric Ripert may not be the ideal final panel member. I think he's fantastic, but he's not a particularly exciting personality, at least as presented on the show. Other judges like Jay Rayner (or really most of the Masters judges), Ted Allen, Anthony Bourdain ... those guys made judges' table a bit more fun to watch. It's one minor factor, but I think it contributes (and I suspect it's more how he's edited than how he is).

[JJ]

Timothy: I agree that series fatigue is a factor here. And it isn't helped by Bravo's determination to spin off as many Top Chef-variations as possible. (Pretty soon, the network will consist of nothing but Real Housewifes of blahblahblah and Top Chef original/masters/desserts/amateurs/juniors, ad nauseum.) I still think though that the right combination of talent (in terms of variety of backgrounds, skill sets, and personalities) can still result in an enjoyable season, but I agree that this is really not one of them. Yes, it's fine. It's still watchable, but there is little excitement about either the contestants or, worse, the food. Except for Angelo, everyone seems to cook the same kind of food, and with varying degrees of success, but even when it works the viewer is left mostly indifferent.

[nomnomnom]

Well Dom's rankings align with mine so no issue there.

I haven't watched the previews yet, but you did see what amounted to fairly standard restaurant fare being plated by Kelly and Kevin at the end of episode previews last week for the EC. So I don't think things are limited by any stretch.

I guess this season is finally coming to a close, and I imagine it will be forgotten as soon as it ends. Bourdain may come in and save things by making the EC interesting. I guess Kelly is the obvious choice to go home if you look at the judges panel.

Bourdain did come in and knock Dale out that one season out of the blue so really they are all up for consideration here.

Also, put me in the camp that didn't know there was a Nasa near DC. I thought only Florida and Houston had outposts.

[Bill]

"Compare this last episode to season five's tailgate party -- I feel as if the food served there, while keeping within the spirit of a traditional tailgate party, was creative and certainly appeared delicious."

That's exactly what I was thinking after the last episode but other than the sports theme the circumstances were very different. I would definitely prefer an outside grill with some space to a crammed concession stand. The Soldier Field crew did seem to have a much better grasp on what they were doing and who they were doing it for.
Also, Padma was more memorable in her Bears jersey than her Nats jersey.

[paula]

Top Chef Season 7: Hail to the Chaff.

[Polybus]

I can certainly identify will all of Dom's feelings about the power rankings - it's been a tough season.

I agree with the top two, but at this point, I still have more faith in Kelly's ability to roll with the punches than Angelo or Kevin. Of course, it's all throwing darts, but the other thing that makes me include Kelly in the top three is I see a bona fide connection between Tiffany, Kelly and Ed. I notice that they are sympathetic with each other and helped each other out over the course of the season. Maybe that's Elf illusion, but I banked on it in the last episode and it actually worked out. On the other hand, despite Angelo's skill, he has faltered the last two weeks. It is very possible that he may tighten his belt and blow us away this week, but on a NASA space cuisine challenge, I find it difficult to imagine. Then there is Kevin, whose ups and downs are unbankable. Sure, he could easily win this challenge, but he could just as easily create Pla-Dough for the astronauts.

I'm probably wrong, but here goes:

1) Tiffany
2) Ed
3) Kelly
4) Angelo
5) Kevin

@timothy - I'm not sure I agree with the seven season hypothesis. I certainly understand it and I agree that most TV shows are burned out after seven seasons and few of them are able to sustain a high level all through, let alone have the single season success like TC has. But that really applies more to fiction-based programs. Reality TV has a different curve. I remember many people thinking that S2 of TC was the end, that the show had one great season and then tanked. It didn't happen. Personally, I thought that S3 was the end, but S4 then blew the lid off again. I think that TC will have ups and downs and that each season will appeal to different people for different reasons. Not only do the chefs change, but the Elves change, the viewers change. I think that each season has the capability to be completely fresh. Whether it will or not has yet to be determined. But I think the possibility is there and I hope - as a dedicated viewer - that we will still see some fresh, explosive seasons before it becomes a dinosaur.

[bryanD]

"We see them being told that their dishes will have to "[follow] the guidelines for dining in zero gravity."----skillet

Mmmmmmm. Savor paste.

"....the real problem is just that Top Chef has gone on for seven seasons and the magic is gone. There are not that many television shows I can think of that have been good for seven seasons."----Timothy

That is true of saga TV dependent on character expectations versus "development", but the format of Top Chef resembles more the broad outlines of the variety show or the soap opera. These both are capable of renaissance, such as when Tim Conway joined the already fine Carol Burnett Show at around season 7; and who can forget the Luke & Laura storyline that reinvigorated General Hospital in its 289th season?
So I wouldn't count TC out. Every season can be a new beginning. Even the loss of Tom, as jarring as that would be, could be offset by the hiring of another sterling chef (sterling being the qualifier). Or by hiring Jeffrey Steingarten and say, Mike Voltaggio to replace Padma Lakshmi and to "check in" at kitchen scenes.

"The reason(s) as to why this season isn't as good are probably too complicated to determine from the outside."--Anon Man

Here's one you've never heard: Art departments. The TC art direction and cinematography experts have obviously decided to key-down the video product. The deep reds, bright whites, chrome silvers, and deep blacks of season 1 have been gradually eliminated from the sets over the years, but this season is downright PBS-videotape-1974-quality. (a slight exaggeration) Where is the nice color saturation? Were the Hilton ceilings not high enough for optimum light array and the cameras set to Dull. But that doesn't explain the sets themselves which might be coined "DC Haze". I think Top Chef should hire the art people over at crazy Fox News Channel. There you will see a close approximation of Top Chef Season 1 color aesthetics and lighting.
What I'm saying is that there might be a subliminal reinforcement of negative vibrations by way the abegnation of color theory.

I'm REALLY hoping for an Angelo comeback, but as long as there is no howler of a decision (re:Kenny vs Amanda) I aim to enjoy this straaange-sounding episode.

That is all.

[bfish]

bryanD, interesting thoughts on the set colors and lighting -- I'll have to pay more attention to that. Your theory makes sense to me.

After watching Project Runway last week, it really underscored how lackluster this season has of Top Chef has seemed. I was only just hanging on with PR too (i.e. not overly excited about the show though actually had picked some favorites w/in a few weeks, unlike TC this year) but then came the team challenge. Honest, I watch these shows (TC and PR) primarily to see the contestants' skills and creativity challenged, but that jolt of drama really did pick things up. Nothing on TC this year has come close to doing that -- either drama-wise or food-wise.

One good think I'd like to point out about this season is Michael Voltaggio's videos recreating the winning dishes. Outside of the the regular show's highly competitive cooking showdowns -- which did not highlight this side of hime -- Michael demonstrates that he's a great teacher in addition to being highly knowledgable. I wish I could have him for a cooking coach!

[Joanna]

Hey Dom, I know you're very anti-rumor, but I just wanted to leave a quick note that you and anyone looking to avoid rumors should STAY AWAY FROM EATER.COM right now. They have multiple posts that they acknowledge are rumors, but whether they are true or not, I'm really wishing I hadn't read them.

Also - nomx3 - there are actually a bunch of NASA centers! Florida is well-known because of the shuttle launches, and Houston because that's where mission control is located, but the headquarters are in D.C. and there are other NASA facilities scattered around the country: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NASA#Facilities

I'm very curious about how this challenge will be structured. If it's in line with the airplane challenge a few seasons ago, it could be great. I thought that challenge provided a "blank-enough" canvas for the chefs while still giving them constraints that require some creativity and really forced them to think about the food and how it would be prepared.

On the other hand, if they have to use Tang and freeze-dried strawberries, well, I think that's just too much for the final challenge. Let the chefs show that they can cook, but don't give them something totally crazy this close to the end!

[Skillet Doux]

Joanna... thanks for the heads-up, and thanks for referencing rather than reposting :-)

[Anon Man]

So, because I thought I would see if ruining the surprise would effect on how I view the season, I went and looked for said spoiler. Other than rumors about the next year's season being an all-star version, with a few of this season's contestants mentioned as possible (names of alleged contestants not posted here), I don't see anything that would really be considered a "spoiler". That a reality show might do a season of all-stars would be about as shocking as them doing a spin-off show (or two or three...)

In other words, its not like they posted something like "we saw the following 4 people in Singapore" or "so and so goes home tonight", which is what I would think of as a spoiler.

[Daniel]

Anon...you didn't read between the lines. As Joanna points out, the spoilers are significant, and if you want a surprise, you should avoid the site.

[Anon Man]

@Daniel, yeah you can read BETWEEN the lines and come up with all sorts of theories there and on everything else. (This is why I didn't mention the current contestants the post mentions.) But, you can also come up with counter-theories. None of the contestants from other seasons were winners, some weren't even finalists. So, does that mean the people mentioned from this sesaon aren't winners? Or does it mean one of them is the winner? I really think you're being hyper-sensitive.

To me, the biggest spoiler all season has been that the first person who speaks every episode either wins or goes home.

[TxGriff]

@ Anon- trying to keep this spoiler free, but the disclaimer on eater.com is that the proposed contestants for the all star season are competing for a second chance since they "didn't win their season." Given that disclaimer, if you look at the contestants, it is pretty straight forward to me as far as spoilers go. Not namaing any names, but I have to agree, if you want to keep this season a surprise, stay AWAY from eater.com.

Feel free to erase this comment if too much is being given away.

[aaalex]

dominic: for me this season has been weak from about the 3rd or 4th episode on. i think you've been generous and patient - it's obvious you love the show - and i've come in to check up on the rankings from time to time, but one of the most telling moments - as far as i'm concerned - was your post-mortem to the CIA episode. you began the post-mortem by expressing surprise at how the chefs had wasted an opportunity to disguise their dishes as dishes assigned to other chefs. i wouldn't say you were exasperated - don't want to put words in your mouth - but maybe for the first time it seemed clear that - for you - what this batch of chefs lack is imagination. (an aside: the CIA challenge was, obviously, inspired by anita lo's "scallops", so we'd actually seen the kind of imaginative play the challenge could produce. i think this is part of what made watching the CIA episode so sad.) when i watch this year's show, i react to the personal drama - will ed and tiff get comfy? no! will angelo boink amanda? no! - but it's the kind of personal drama any reality show can generate with very little effort. so, in terms of personality, etc, this season's made for unexceptional television - not bad television, just unexceptional.

i disagree with danny's entry 100%. for me, although it was clear from early on who were the best chefs last year, i tuned in to be surprised/impressed by the kind of creativity on display from the voltaggios, kevin, and jen. also, the level of creativity was so elevated that the middle of the pack had to come up with interesting dishes just to feature at all. it pulled better cooking from all of last year's participants. this year? the lower level of creativity has allowed the chefs to get away with relatively safe food. (i still can't believe a meatball sub was almost a winning dish) and the one chef who regularly tried to be creative (kenny) was not impressive because he couldn't edit himself: doing too much, equating creativity with doing more than was required. i'm going to tune in to the finals, but i won't be sad to see the end of this season.

on the other hand, i'm looking forward to top chef "just desserts". the "chemistry class" aspect of dessert-making should give plenty of room for entertaining fuck-upery. not sure what i think of johnny iuzinni, but hubert keller should be fun to listen to.

the franchise is obviously getting old, but i think a better grade of chef - more unpredictable artistry - for top chef season eight, and all will be forgiven.

[bryanD]

"bryanD, interesting thoughts on the set colors and lighting -- I'll have to pay more attention to that."===bfish

I hope I didn't overstate things too much. Be I miss those deeep black shadows and the contrasts it throws, I really do. Everything is tan and brown this year. Just watched some Hung season episodes today. It sure was pretty indoors back then.

Also, note to self: "abnegation", not "abegnation". Oy.

"...STAY AWAY FROM EATER.COM..."---Joanna

Yep. Even bad intel is a spoiler if it takes too long to tease out.

"...not sure what i think of johnny iuzinni..."---aaalex

Daniel Baloud was very complimentary of former employee Iuzinni in his book, Letters. I mention that only because Baloud is not much of a name dropper, and is apparently not an easy person with compliments. So that's good.

And good luck with TC Just Desserts (I think that may be too "rich" for me, but who knows)

[HF]

Hey, I just found this blog and I'm glad I did. This blog post and comments were well thought out. bryanD's comment about color is on the money and very obvious when you watch the episodes marathon-style like it's being broadcast today. It's probably been said in earlier posts (which I haven't read) but the editing seems very weird this season... most obvious in the restaurant wars episode where the judges-at-dinner clips and Judge's Table clips didn't jive at all. (BTW, am I the only one irritated that they call it "Judge's Table" and not "The Judges Table"? Is that a carryover from food competitions or just a production decision? It reminds me of the "Indigo Girls v The Indigo Girls" conversations back in the day, ha!)

Although I'm sure it's for literary effect... "...tilapia, the boneless skinless chicken breast of the sea." ...in the interest of disclosure, tilapia is a freshwater fish;^)

[Erik N]

My wife and I have a pet theory on this season's flat vibe. Most other seasons have had clear front runners. The first group have been technically immaculate chefs (Stefan, Hung, Stephanie) with vanilla styles that rarely making mistakes. Their consistent excellence pushed those around them to strive harder (hate on Hosea all you want, he showed up in New Orleans PREPARED).

The second group are the Wow! factor guys who'd churn out the jaw dropping white chocolate wasabi salmon or banana polenta dishes.

Last season had both and was great; this season has neither.

[Dan_boston]

@anon - why would I be hypersensitive about you not recognizing a clear implication? :). I assure you, it doesn't impact me at all. Again, the site offers a clear and very significant spoiler, and should be avoided by those who prefer to find things out from the show. If, however, you are able to avoid putting 2 and 2 together, it might indeed be safe ;)

[skm]

I ate at Kelly's Vail restaurant two weeks ago. I'm not nearly the nuanced critic Dom is, so my general impressions will have to do. We were very satisfied - it wasn't the best meal we'd ever had, but nothing we ate disappointed at all. Everything we ate was fresh and local. Elk carpaccio, local tomato salad, Colorado steak, and Colorado potato-crusted trout. None of the sides felt like afterthoughts - it's clear Kelly pays careful attention to detail. And, we're still talking about dessert two weeks later. Everything was cooked perfectly and all of the dishes were ingredient-focused and simple and very well-seasoned - though she's had some salting problems on the show, she nailed it that night in her place. The service walked the line between friendly and formal beautifully. It's expensive, but the Vail rent has to be astronomical, so I get it. All in all, we had a very nice night and we'd go back.