Frost

Courtney looks like the producers favorite this season. Her bakes do not seem to merit it. Wasn't her Pavlova raw and cracked beyond recognition? And her Lambeth cake had some issues too (that I can't remember). I wish some of these bakers would wear hairnets. I keep waiting for a judge to pull a hair out of their food! I like Natasha and Meghan. Rolf is good but I can't quite read his personality.

TITLE*: HARRY POTTER: WIZARDS OF BAKING CATEGORY*: COMPETITIVE REALITY NETWORK: FOOD NETWORK RELEASE DATE: NOVEMBER 14, 2024 SYNOPSIS: Nine teams of pastry chefs and cake artists are tasked with crafting spellbinding edible showpieces inspired by moments and themes from the Harry Potter saga. James and Oliver Phelps (Fred and George Weasley) bring exceptional charm and behind-the-scenes anecdotes as hosts of this magical series, joined by culinary judges, Carla Hall and Jozef Youssef and more iconic Harry Potter stars. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: HEADER:

I like that so far, the bakers are pretty free to use whatever flavors they want. Just, make a cupcake. Or make a pie. The rules are about the decorating, not making someone combine coffee with green apple syrup. I like the baker's skills being judged on skill, not whether they can make something edible out of ingredients no one ever would use in real life.

I really like Joel, but I'm very happy with Manny's win. Joel just can't stop putting on extra stuff! His Frankenstein's Monster looked great, and then he just had to do the stupid pitchfork and dirt and whatever else he slapped on there. He needs to follow Coco Chanel's advice: once you think your jewelry is perfect, take one piece off. I thought Aaron's cakescape was lame. The pyramid didn't even have a peak and the alien spaceship was just a wonky cube. And whoa, he ground up graham crackers and spread them all over! Not a good effort. Hollie's scale was way off. Her werewolf was three times the size of the supposed houses. I thought this season was fine. The laboratory wasn't as much fun as the hotel or camp themes. Ready for Holiday Baking Championship! (although I'm not thrilled to see Nancy)

If Marshall was also a student of Dudendorff, he would have known the Brothers sisters. He finds Sazz's script, hawks it to them as his own, and then he kills Sazz so she can't expose him. They'd help him dispose of the body so the movie isn't shut down. Also, they could have gotten the cameras set up in the various apartments to get material for the movie, which ended up showing Sazz in Charles' apartment. There's still a big question about Marshall's sniper skills. Is he a secret member of an assassins' guild?

I knew Lillian was toast as soon as she swapped for Steampunk Zombie. Not that there's anything wrong with swapping, but it seems to signal the universe to cause chaos! I think that was a weak prize anyway. She should have gotten the 10 minute head start prize. Lillian did deserve to go home. Her cake was an over worked mess. And technically, it wasn't a good bake. Oh well. I'm rooting for Joel but Aaron will probably win.

Theirry was a one trick pony with the blown sugar. He relied on it too much on every single bake. I hope Hollie is done next week. I haven't been too impressed with her. I was so happy that Joel won tonight! I really don't want Aaron to win. He comes across as entitled and smug. I like Lillian. She is having a good time and it shows!

This show needs to figure out what it is. They throw in dramatic moments like the doc's connection to Ken, but then they have ridiculous stuff like last week's man whore and Tristan's mom's dangling bags of pus, like a pair of demented earrings. Moody Tristan staring out at the ocean showing exquisite man pain does not match up well with the randy cruise owner's wife who is worried about losing her personal shopper.

I'm curious about how the judges handle the weird ingredients. I mean, a soy puddle in a cookie? Stephanie mentioned she could taste the soy. Did she like it? Is she now considering putting soy sauce in all her desserts? I know in the past bakers have tried to use an ingredient but negate the flavor - like sauerkraut - and they've gotten dinged for it. But does anyone really want to eat cookies with a soy puddle?

Megan was the right one to go. An almost burnt brownie? A brownie is simple enough, compared to a pavlova or laminated pastry. If it's simple, it has to be perfect. I really felt for Hollie, having to make laminated pastry, versus a mousse or other much easier options. It's too bad it was undercooked. I'm getting a little tired of Aaron. I don't really like having past contestants coming back again. They really have an advantage, having worked in these stressful and weird situations before.

I can't get over how free and easy the crew is on the ship. Swimming in the pool, laying out by the pool, jumping into bed with lots of different passengers... I can see kicking off the dancing, but the rest of it seems ridiculous. It's too bad because I think the concept is good and I like most of the cast, but the writing is genuinely awful. What's the male nurse's name? The one supposedly so in love in Avery that he flirts constantly with female passengers? And then keeps having conversations with the Doc about not competing for her, as though she has no agency in who she gets into a relationship with. Even for someone with Avery's medical background, going to medical school is going to take years and it's not like you can go part time or Zoom into anatomy class from the ship. How on earth are they going to have Avery go to medical school and keep her as a character? The three year commitment would be after she finishes, not before she goes. The military and major companies do programs like this all the time. They'll pay for business school or medical school and after graduation, the person stays there for a certain number of years. I've never heard of it beforehand. What kind of guarantee would the employee have if some HR rep or executive cancels the program before they even start? I know I'm thinking about this way more than the writers did! 😄

There's news that the Golden Owl has been found in France! I'd love Josh to do a follow up.

I know red herrings have been part of the show from the start, but I'm thoroughly confused even by episode 6. We're over halfway through and new body parts are still showing up. There doesn't seem to be a sniff of an actual motive for any murder. I watch this show for the characters and the "style" but I would like a little actual plot.

Thank goodness! JL is gone! Wasn't he in the bottom two three weeks in a row? I was really worried about Thierry and his broken cookie tubes. I was yelling (in my head), "Don't screw this up and let JL skate by another week!" Lilli is really stepping up. She has a wicked imagination. Aaron almost seems like a ringer this season.

The pilot was OK. The romantic triangle was too much for the very first episode. And I'm not sure why the Doctor has to narrate what he's doing to the nurses. He comes across as a bit condescending. I'm definitely giving it a few weeks though. I like Joshua Jackson and Don Johnson so I'm hoping the quality of the writing improves. I have a bone to pick with costuming. The captain should not be wearing bright white shoes with his dark uniform!!!! I couldn't take my eyes off them! I'm also skeptical of the heavy drinking on the shore leave. Not all passengers leave the ship, so I would think at least one medical person would stay on board. I liked the goofy couple who had multiple medical emergencies.