BlackberryJam

Another truly enjoyable episode. While I sometimes found that Massimo sucked all the air out of the room, he could be entertaining. His food (and Bailey’s) just didn’t excite me. I’m sure it would be delicious and fun to eat but not the adventure I want from my Top Chef dishes. I mean, a plate of amazing cabbage? I’ve never had that and I WANT it. Absolutely looking forward to the final. I love this show doesn’t have to tear down one contestant to build another up. ETA: In real time, Tristen’s dad died a week ago? Ten days maybe? The emotional fortitude he had to keep it together…I couldn’t have done it.

Kristen is delightful on this. It gives me all the camaraderie I love about Top Chef and gives me a chance to laugh about cooking shows, all the while showing some tasty food and interesting techniques.

I wish we’d seen more of Canada as well, but nothing is going to make me stop loving Top Chef. I would be fine with a Shuai, Massimo, Tristen final. Or swap out Massimo for Cesar. In liked Lana, but her food didn’t excite me. Bailey doesn’t annoy me as much as she seems to annoy others, but again, I’m just not excited about her food. I am still having food fantasies about Anchovy Ranch and I don’t even like ranch dressing.

@wenhikuExactly. So he sounded like an idiot for reasons of PLOT. He just did a great job of sounding like an idiot. I wouldn’t have trusted him either. Especially if he has a history of being a doormat. I see Forte as Randy from How I Met Your Mother. So…I can’t see him bagging a hottie like Tina Fey.

Yes, and maybe this is where Forte falls flat for me. He was unable to articulate all this to Kate in a manner that didn’t make him sound like a complete idiot. Colman is just fantastic and he seemed to ooooze chemistry every time he was on screen. I’m wondering if my issues with Forte were exacerbated by how good Colman and Marco Calvani were. I feel like Steve Carell would have done better in the Jack role, but I can’t see Forte playing Nick either. I also enjoyed how Nick couldn’t slot himself into Ginny’s life.

I enjoyed it overall. I had seen the movie back in the day and really enjoyed it. I liked that the series gave Anne more of a personality. I thought Kerri Kenney-Silver (55) looked on point to be married to Steve Carell (62). No botox, natural wrinkling, easy to manage hair. She looked amazing in that white dress in the first episode. I thought Will Forte was the acting weak link. Tina and Colman have great on screen chemistry. Will and Tina don’t show that same connection. It could just be that Colman is a chemistry magnet. I was a little disappointed we didn’t see Lila and Anne grieving more together and Lila wasn’t involved in the funeral planning but Kate was? WTF? ETA: Also I thought I’d clocked Chloe Troast as the Marriott desk person.

When Katianna added the tofu, I was screaming NOOOO. It just seemed unnecessary. The judges kept calling it porridge but I thought she said it was just crumbled tofu.

I don’t want to defend Chipotle, because it can totally tear people up, but the lettuce, tomatoes, and guacamole have always been fresh and good for me. I enjoyed the challenge and it made me hungry for a chicken bowl with fajita veg and guacamole. Vinny is too milquetoast for me to care about his edit. He feels like cannon fodder. Henry too. I’m not that bothered by Massimo because I think there is no way he makes the final.

I felt the ending was just a little rushed. I felt like it needed about 5 or 7 more minutes in the episode. I thought the Gordon/Aileen story was just purposeless angst.

I loved the original movie.And i'm really looking forward to this.

I wouldn't know. I've not read those or seen the show. By predictable, I didn't mean that the characters acted the same over and over. I meant that I could predict what was going to happen in each scene and what was going to happen next. Season two was a particularly long and painful episode of NCIS. But then again, maybe the writers of those shows are just ripping off the Reacher books.

I'm was done with Gordon within thirty seconds of him being on screen. He's a cartoon villain.

I know this is based on a book series and I'm just wondering if the books are as predictable. I'm certainly not watching for the good acting or the incredible storylines. Alan Ritchson is hot and likable.

The editing of the 3 day long fight scene with Paulie was terrible. One actor would strike a pose while awaiting the move from the other. Ugh. Had it been edited better, it wouldn’t have felt so choreographed. I also still don’t care about Teresa. I mean, how many people died for this personality-free and interest-free rando?

Tropes are for the fanfiction I read. Take two characters I already love and put them in a faking dating, single bed situation and I AM DOWN for that. The tropes aren’t fun unless I care about the characters first. I particularly like book series because the characters do get developed. Or should get developed. Not gonna lie, I read some books just to have something to read that doesn’t require much mental effort. And allows me to escape reality for a while. Right now, I’m reading the latest Tessa Wegert book in the Shana Merchant series. They are…fine. I guess. Too much serial killer nonsense, but they don’t require me to think or care too much. I can read the book, let it take up my time and then forget it later.