katisha

Oh, @Snazzy Daisy, so sorry that you read Theo's facial expressions in the previews all too well. From very early in the piece Declan was in cruise mode so it was always going to be between Theo and Rhiannon as to who'd be going home, but I suppose I can buy that Rhiannon's split sauce was less offensive than undercooked seafood and missing elements. But when they were recapping some of Theo's best dishes, it made me realise all over again that he's not one-dimensional like Brent and has made so much more of a variety of dishes and for that reason alone, in my view he deserved a top 3 spot. So wrong. 😡 Whilst I think it'd serve the producers right if Rhiannon did "do an Emma Dean" and manage to win whilst being manifestly unqualified to do so, I'm now 100% on Team Declan if I can't also be on Team Theo. I just wish Declan had helped Theo earlier than he did because it would have given him a better chance to sneak into the finals and pip Rhiannon at the post, but the fact that he helped him at all, something which would never have happened on a show like Survivor or other more mean-spirited reality shows, is one of the reasons I keep watching this show. Actually, I'm officially Team ABB as well (Anyone But Brent). Not because I dislike him, mind you (although the cocky version of him is pretty obnoxious), but because his winning has seemed so inevitable for so many weeks now. I suppose we can only hope that that incredibly mega complicated dessert he's dodged all season is part of the finale, giving Declan at least a chance to beat him. I'm old enough to remember 'The Lord's Prayer' by Sister Janet Mead, so when this was on K&K in this context I found it absolutely hilarious!

This may well be a rhetorical question, but did Brent really cook the best dish on tonight's episode or did he win extra points for the best sob story? I suppose we have no choice but to take the word of our esteemed judges that every repetitive protein on hibachi/glaze/adobo sauce/sambal/fresh salad is something bold and revolutionary but I remain unconvinced because they even look identical as per @Snazzy Daisy's pics last night of two Brent dishes side by side from different weeks showing how far (?!) he has come. I'm sure everyone's already noticed this but the order in which the food gets tasted has been especially significant this season. If you are tasted first or last, you'll either win or come close to winning. Tomorrow night looks interesting - a Peter Gilmour dish where you don't get a recipe. Was I mistaken or was it a savoury dish as opposed to the usual mega complicated dessert?

Precisely! Henry Higgins would have had a field day with both Caths, I think. 🤣

Waaaoooowwww! That felt like it was a long time coming, didn't it? I really feel like the producers missed a big opportunity here because whilst they tried to milk every last drop of pathos from the episode, it would have been so much sadder if Cath's BFF Rhiannon had been the one to eliminate her rather than Brent. I suppose I'm happy for Cath that she has lasted much longer in the competition than any person her age ever has before but it doesn't sit well with me because there was so much producer manipulation to make it happen IMHO. But we were treated to the full Cath show today, with the pep talks of "you got this, sweetie" and even patting herself on the back. It's starting to feel like we're in Groundhog Day when Brent cooks, in all honesty. The second he goes outside of his tried and true formula he usually falls on his face, so we end up with, yet again: protein cooked on hibachi glaze on the protein which was cooked on the hibachi sauce which is reduced from a pressure cooker stock to serve with the protein which was cooked on the hibachi a salsa full of freshness and herbs to accompany the protein which was cooked on the hibachi. Honestly, can the man do anything else? It's for this reason that I honestly believe the final two should actually be Deccy and Theo, because even though they too have their favourite lanes (Deccy - fish fish and more fish, Theo - lamb and Greek dishes in general), at least they are willing to venture outside of those lanes and more often than not succeed when they try new things. It's manifestly wrong that Rhiannon has ended up as the last woman standing but much as I hate to say it, she probably deserves that spot more than Cath did. @Aerobicidal, it's time for another lesson on Aussie accents. 🙃 A whole episode of Cath talking was pretty tortuous but especially the way she pronounced "Dijon". Now, when I say it, I say "dee-jon". When Cath says it, she displays the bogan inflection that we see in New South Wales and Victoria on this particular vowel sound, the one you would hear in "key" or "see" or, well, "Dijon"! The closest approximation I can make of how it would be spelled is "duyyyyjon". Ouch, it's bloody painful because with that accent, a simple one sound vowel turns into an awful dipthong!

I am not 100% positive but pretty close. I think the producers are telegraphing very heavily that it's a bloke year!

Well, even though the producers probably told him to say it, the minute Brent came out with, "I'm not gonna let these other two wallies win this challenge," I began hoping not only that he wouldn't win it, but that it'd be because he left a bone or two in the fish. And as it turned out, he didn't, but the main thing is he didn't win the challenge either, so yay! I can't say I care much for "cocky edit Brent". Meanwhile, there's probably nothing terribly revoluntionary about what Declan did with his barley dessert, because barley is the blandest of bland grains and out of all the ones that were left, he picked the right one. But I honestly don't think that Brent or possibly even Theo would have been able to do as well had they had to make a dessert featuring a grain so I'm really happy for Declan. But for once I felt like all three dishes, whilst probably not top 5-worthy in many, many other seasons, were of a high standard for this season and none of them were inedible, probably because Cath and Rhi weren't cooking! Roll on Sunday where we're saying bye-bye to either Cath or Rhiannon, since we know the blokes are not going anywhere.

Totally agree. It's almost like the producers begged him to come back and virtually guaranteed him a win because why else would he be so uber-confident? Quite frankly, it makes me want Declan to win if Theo can't. I thought you might say "Velcro dots"!

You're going to love tonight's episode, then, @Aerobicidal! I could have saved myself an hour or so by not watching it because Declan vs Kath for the spot in the immunity challenge - pfft, no contest. And Brent v Declan and Theo for the super duper special advantage in the immunity challenge - pfft, no contest. It would have been so much more fun if the judges had made the surprise announcement, "We've actually come to the decision to send Rhiannon home to Townsville on the first plane we could get her onto because we've realised we've made a horrible mistake and she actually isn't a very good cook. Oops!" But no, she was just not well. Would it be too bitchy of me to say it was caused by tasting her own cooking given that she's served two inedible dishes in a row? 🐈 Whatever little mojo Rhi-Rhi had has deserted her now so I have to agree. She has to be the next out the door. 😢 Yeah, it's really starting to sink in now.

Normally by top five time, you should get nothing but great dishes which demonstrate how far a contestant has developed. Inedible dishes should be confined to the first couple of weeks when they eliminate the "filler" contestants. How embarrassing for the producers that this is happening.

Well, if the third person into the immunity cook-off tomorrow is not Declan, I'll truly be astonished. It was going to be either him or Theo winning today (go, Theo!) because even for them, Cath and particularly Rhiannon were shambolic today. I always feel a bit sorry for whoever is on the non-gantry at location shoots. Poor Brent was kind of hanging around awkwardly like a spare sock!

Thanks to this photo, which was on the MC Au Facebook page last night, I already knew Brent would win the Mystery Box challenge tonight. What is he not wearing that everyone else is wearing in this photo? I can't believe they've been so sloppy this season. And yet there's no Sportsbet odds because they're sick of stuff getting out before they're ready to release it? 😑 There was not much suspense to be had in this episode, so I had to find things of interest. As bogan as she sounds, I'm now pretty sure Rhiannon is not a Townsville native. @Aerobicidal, unlike the huge variety of accents you get from state to state across the USA, in Australia most of us sound much the same but there are certain vowels which are a bit of a giveaway as to where you're from. Rhiannon pronounced "eggplant" as "eggplarnt", so I would guess she might be from South Australia? No true Queenslander, myself included, ever says "darnce" or "Frarnce"! Still on Rhiannon, it's just as well she put that raw fish on top of the "eggplarnt" salsa or whatever it was because it looked like a pile of dog vomit before that. Also, how on earth did she not know that fish fillets often stick to the hibachi and end up looking like a huge burnt mess? Hell, I don't eat fish or use a hibachi but I've seen it happen several times on this show. Do your research, girl! I talk to myself from time to time (not because I'm nuts - at least, I don't think so) but I don't ever call myself "sweetie" or "darling" whilst I'm doing it, unlike Cath. Or maybe she's talking to the food? I couldn't work it out! Poor Theo, not being successful with his mum/yiayia's dolmades recipe. I love dolmades!

That's actually the main reason I thought she was getting booted! They usually only dig further into a person's backstory if they're on the way out the door. For once (this season) the editors fooled me. It could well be a Townsville bogan thing, @Aerobicidal :) I say "slah-lom", personally.

So close and yet so far, @Snazzy Daisy. I was so positive she was gonna go when that fondant failed so badly but I guess they couldn't get past the baking soda-tinged biscuits Malissa made. Those poor cameramen will be in 🍑 mourning. And so the twin agendas of 'Secrets and Surprises' have come to pass - a male winner, and a top 5 made up of only men and old chooks. I'm pretty sure this is the furthest any woman Rhiannon or Cath's age has ever made it in any season of Masterchef AU. I mean, even when Julie Goodwin won, she was only 38. Sashi was 39 when he won and I think he might be the oldest ever winner? And I should be glad that two women in my general age group made top 5 but... WHY THOSE TWO?!!!! Cath really is so much like Kath from Fountain Lakes, isn't she, even down to the self-directed pep talks ("come on, sweetie - you got this") and never-ending internal monologues. And last but not least, I'm perfectly OK with any of the men winning but I would rather it be Theo or Declan than Brent, because as others have said, it's not quite an even playing field having Brent coming back this season after making it halfway through another. And whilst he sometimes irritates me, I actually really like Declan a lot of the time too. You can't fault his work ethic and today, he was the only contestant brave (or silly) enough to play the strategy of putting a huge effort into dish 1 so that he wouldn't have to go through round 2, so I'm happy for him that it paid off so handsomely.

So I think all of us are pretty much expecting that a woman will go home tonight. The question is, which one? 🤔

Ah, Adam Liaw. What a season that was. He was the worthiest of winners but I loved young Callum too. Those were the days! Meanwhile, back to reality. What's worse than watching Cath and Rhiannon cook in an immunity challenge? Having them watch an immunity challenge and shriek from the gantry like a pair of fishwives. My ears! 🙉 If Theo had managed to sqeak over the line to beat that chef tonight I might have been convinced he was getting a last minute winner's edit, but no - if I owned a house and were a gambling woman, I would be betting that house on Brent. How is it that Malissa has been in five immunity challenges and probably even more eliminations? Inconsistency, thy name is Malissa. My fearless prediction for Sunday is that a woman will be eliminated. I'm a genius! 🤣

Hmmm. I looked. I think it must be a mirage! 😂 At this point there's not much Cath can do to bring me around to being a fan of hers but at least she admitted to not doing much in that challenge and Rhiannon carrying her along and apologised for it. A bit of self-awareness is never a bad thing. Yay to Theo and Malissa for acing that entree! Did they pick the colour of their Brown team uniforms based on Declan's 💩coloured jacket yesterday? Whilst I don't think I would really enjoy eating that dessert that Brent and Declan made, I'll have to take the word of the judges that it was weird but nice. On another note, not only has this season really been a bit of a disappointment in terms of the quality of contestants, but the closer we get to the end, the more I'm remembering that it's Jock's swansong and that we lost him after it was done, and it's still making me sad. 🥹 Yeah, I'm not Rhi's biggest fan but she's from Townsville so the odds were pretty high she was going to be quite bogan-esque! And I do respect that what she does, she probably does pretty well and at least she seems to have a decent palate. When I lived up in Townsville myself for a few years I knew people who sounded and acted a lot like her and many of them were rough diamonds, very Aussie/ocker but would be the first to help someone out if they needed help.

Ah, a Kath and Kim fan - love it! 😂

So it seems there are actually two agendas this season - the one where a bloke has to win, and the one where the old bats are kept around way longer than they should be (and as you all know, I'm not being ageist as I myself am older than dirt 😂 ) Even after that pressure test when she seemed to implode right from the start, Cath bloody well survives and Rue goes home. And Rue had such a lovely, classy exit speech that it made me realise she was by far my favourite of the four women left and I'm quite bummed that she's gone, to be honest. Can anyone explain to me why Malissa played that pin? Not only did she get everything done, but it looked really good and she said she was happy with the flavours. Mystifying. Those of you watching from overseas and noticing how painfully broad Cath's and Rhiannon's accents are, I couldn't agree more. They both sound what we call very "bogan" (I guess the US equivalent would be "redneck"). I would like to think that my accent is a lot closer to Malissa's accent, where you can tell she's Australian but it doesn't hurt your ears to listen to her talk. And last but not least, where did Declan get that truly heinous jacket?

I don't know if it makes Emma Dean relevant but a few years ago she and Lynton, the runner-up from the dreaded Season 5, were co-hosting a show on Channel 10 called My Market Kitchen. God only knows why! After tonight's episode I say bring on the all-male top three because the way this season is panning out, it's the only possible sensible outcome. At the moment, the most confident and seemingly competent female cook left is Rhiannon. Yes, I said it! Of the other three... Rue got lost in her head and let her lack of confidence get the better of her. Cath did something really dumb in the midst of all her chaos. Malissa did what Malissa does i.e. cook poorly 75% of the time. So that means tomorrow night she's a shoo-in to use the pin and we'll lose either Cath or Rue. I love it when Theo breaks out in the voice of his dad, complete with Greek accent. Hilarious and very endearing. I don't find Cath's constant self-directed pep talks quite so endearing - you know how she's constantly telling herself, "Keep calm, Cath." "You've got this, Cath."

And the train wreck that is 'Secrets and No Surprises Whatsoever' lurches on. Not for one millisecond did I ever think that either Declan or Brent would be going home. But I did wonder if Adi's simpler (if poorly executed) flavours might get her across the line when the judges appeared to be suggesting Rue's dish tasted weird. I just cannot get on board with a top 7 which includes Cath and Rhiannon. @Aerobicidal, I am also feeling S5 vibes about how it's all playing out and that's the worst season of all time so needless to say, this is not a good thing!

What, not COLES?!

Another Sunday, another elimination!

Just when I thought this season couldn't get any more insane, Malissa beats a professional chef and wins an immunity pin. Right, show, SURE she does. 😏🤔🙄 The same Malissa who made an embarrassingly simple and unfinished cake only last week that the average year 8 home economics student could have executed more successfully. The same Malissa who's in practically every elimination episode. I guess the only good part about this turn of events is the fact that she won't have it very long because she'll be in the next elimination and will be forced to use it. It looks like it, doesn't it? As long as Malissa, Cath or Rhiannon are not in the final three, I think I can live with any other outcome.

You know, a thought struck me tonight - what's missing from this season, apart from half-decent home cooks, is any sort of element of surprise. To give credit to past edit gibbons, in the past few seasons, from time to time they did trick me in regards to who was going home/staying/winning the challenge/winning the immunity etc. But this season I can't remember being surprised by much at all. In fact, it's almost as though we've all read spoilers even though none actually exist in 2023! Right from the time the three guys all ended up on the same team, they were never going to lose that challenge since the producers' agenda about a male winner has been so obvious. And look at the lineup on the other team: Chaotic Cath (who spent 2.5 hours preparing walnuts and grapes), Rhiannon (bossy but pretty useless), Rue (a bit of a space cadet even though she has some talent) and Adi, whose overthinking and hubris tends to get in the way of her ever excelling at challenges. Why was Jock giving Declan credit for saving the mashed potato part of the dish? He didn't save it - Shannon Bennett told him what to do and he did it. 😕 I enjoyed Theo in the episode tonight because he was having such fun being able to cook food he loves. Go, Theo! Why is there always a team in challenges which chooses the most prep-heavy dish imaginable and then wonder why they're getting nowhere with 30 minutes to service time?

I will too. We still have Cath and Rhiannon, who have fingernails on a blackboard voices and are LOUD. 🙄