PR5 ep. 1

Project Runway Season 5 is here!!! Yay!

Well, it started last week, so I'm a bit behind in my recap, thus it's likely to be short 'cause I don't know how much I really remember. Second episode is on tonight, though. Woo hoo!

Okay, here we go!

The Good:
There seem to be a couple stand-out designers this season, as well as a couple stand-out drama queens. Both good things on this show ... as long as the drama isn't forced, anyway. And I am absolutely thrilled to pieces that they reprised the grocery store challenge from Season 1!!! Fun! In my many fantasies in which I go on the show and win it with the refreshing aesthetic I've developed despite (and perhaps due to?) my lack of formal training, I often imagine what I would do in a grocery store challenge. Usually, it involves Campbell's Soup labels, which sadly no one has used so far. Probably can't show the brand names or something. Hm. Anyway, sorry for the tangent.

The Bad:
The thing about the drama queens is that sometimes instead of creating drama that is fun for the casual observer to watch, they just annoy the crap out of everyone. Blayne, Suede and Jerell all have the potential to be that person. Suede and Jerell worry me most because they seem almost like they've rehearsed this act so much that any hint of their true personalities will be completely squeezed out in editing. I hopehopehope that is not the case, because that would mean my favorite "competition" show is ruined forever and doomed to the level of the Real World/Road Rules Challenge. Blayne, however, as stupid as his "girlicious" catchphrase was, he might actually end up winning me over with his complete cluelessness, self-proclaimed addiction to tanning, and look of perpetual surprise (and what was with the sniffing? snorting? snuffling?). He might be fun to watch as long as he doesn't overdo it. And it seems that Jerell is already hating on him, so maybe ... catfight? Heh heh.

The Ugly:
What exactly was "girlicious" about Blayne's design anyway?? She looked like a messy black triangle wearing a diaper. Or maybe some kind of weird bird. There was nothing "girl" or "licious" about that outfit. But I'm glad Jerry was the one to be eliminated, and not Blayne or Stella (she's cool, I want to see what she can do). His design was just ... yuck. There were lots of blahs in this challenge, and not a whole lot of wows. I guess I can forgive them since it's the first challenge and maybe they haven't hit their stride, but still. Tablecloths?? Are you kidding me? They should have told the grocery store employees to take them off the shelves.

Runway Rundown: (in order from my most fave to least fave)
Daniel - His plastic cup dress was everything this challenge was meant to be. Nothing short of genius.
Korto - Her yellow-tablecloth kimono dress was actually very pretty in an I-would-wear-that kind of way. Of course, I would probably take off the vegetables first.
Kelly - Challenge Winner - I loved what she did with the skirt on her dress, but I was not as crazy about the top half as the judges seemed to be. Still, she's got potential for fabulousness.
Wesley - The proportions on his dress seemed a little bit strange - either that or his model is just oddly shaped. But I really loved what he did with the yellow plastic cups and fly swatters.
Kenley - Her dress was just fun. The red bouncy-ball bodice made me want to go out for recess.
Joe - I wanted to hate this dress when he was describing what he was going to do. But I ended up liking it a lot! Maybe it was due to the lack of worthy competition, who knows.
Terri - Before the challenge even started, I pegged her as one of the first to be eliminated. I may still be right about that, but even so, I liked where she went with her outfit, and she made mops pretty!
Keith - His dress might have been really cool if he'd made it out of something other than a tablecloth.
Emily - Kinda neat, kinda not. Just blah.
Jerell - He made his model look like a clown. I don't remember this being a circus challenge.
Suede - Another tablecloth dress. Another blah. Just boring.
Stella - I'm perhaps giving her more credit than she deserves, but I love her personality and want to see what she's capable of. So she screwed up the first challenge. I don't think she'll make the bottom 3 a habit.
Jennifer - Her dress was incredibly boring and dated, and the lipstick kisses seemed very childish to me. I don't think she'll be around for long.
Leanne - Didn't like this pink poufy candy-covered mess at all! If there was a bottom 4, she'd be the 4th.
Blayne - Ugly, ugly and more ugly, all in one outfit! If that was his goal, he's done a great job.
Jerry - Eliminated - This one was just a mess. Not even worth a description. The worst part was when he told the judges it was for a night on the town. Jerry, you're not even convincing yourself.

Okay, I was really wrong about this being short.