Oholibamah

This season had some pretty weak celebrity guests, but Shay Mitchell managed to escape unscathed in the Episode thread, and I found Emmy Rossum pretty convincing as a judge. But my favorite will forever be Jessica Simpson, both for her intelligent understanding of fashion and her unwavering support of Mondo against Nina and Michael.

Michelle may be mean, but she gives some hilarious and occasionally on-point THs, which is more than I can say for Helen who is just worthless in every way.

For the win! Best non-decoy collection of S10 and the most consistent week-to-week. And being effortlessly cool always helps.

But first the spirit reincarnated itself into the body of another Kelly who attempted to enact its revenge by posing its own "guess a random number" question. When this failed, the revenge of Wigelsworth took another form and rendered all subsequent Kelly's invisible. But seriously, Kelley is the only person this season I am responding positively to. Like, at all. Which is sad because she is barely there. But I am getting such a snarky, confident and intelligent vibe from her that I want moar Kelley plz.

Spoiler: Shei receives best photo next week. Source: Go fucking look at it. Damn.

Given the perfect storm, I would probably behave similarly to how Korina did, albeit with fewer doses of petulance. I think everybody would, given the right set of circumstances. I can't attest to her behavior on social media since I can't be bothered, and I reckon she should probably leave well enough alone. But I just can't get that worked up by her actions on the show. Especially following season 12 with Sandro and Helen, I really don't think Korina was all that bad. She provided disparaging answers about her fellow designer's work in THs, she became defensive toward Amanda's returnee status after almost being eliminated, and she voiced what everybody else is thinking when she perceived she was getting screwed by producer manipulation. Kini, Char and Alexander have each done these same things respectively. Korina had a few added doses of petulance about it all, but I would take petulance over psychopathic camera-smashing and bullying any day. When all is said and done, I can still say that I actually like Korina.

But retro-fashion doesn't literally mean we take items that were sold and worn in the 1970s and transplant them to today. In fact, retro fashion is absolutely what an observant mormon community in Nebraska may consider "70s" two decades later, as they will presumably be borrowing elements from the 70s and incorporating them into whatever Mormons wear. Granted, I do not know a whole lot about 70s fashion, but Amanda's use of simple A-line sillouhettes, patchwork, primary colors, prints, embellishments, vests, and the shape of her pants all conjure the vibe that I think of as 70s, and in fashion, perception might as well be reality. Amanda's designs are not modern, ergo, they must be retro. (I know there are problematic nuances with this argument, but people tend to work on this sort of binary, especially when buying clothes). I don't think either Amanda or Char have an unrealistic expectation of who their "girl" is and what they want to wear. Potential Amanda customers are everywhere. The difference between the two, IMO, is that in the context of designing a collection, Amanda recognizes that there needs to be cohesive ideas and threads that are unique to her S/S 2015 collection and may not be in her S/S 2016 collection, whereas Char thinks that "fly", "cool" and "sexy" (which are perfectly reasonable ways to describe her "girl") are not appropriate inspirations for a collection that will differentiate it from her next one.

Almost 300 models have participated thus far in America's Next Top Model, and while most of them have absolutely sucked, Tyra has managed on occasion to discover some real gems. They may not have won, but here is a place to discuss their merits and why they should be in the running for Best Ever in Top. Model. History. My favorite models, per cycle, have included: Cycle 1: Elyse. She is the reigning Queen of Snark, and would be the top of her season even without her post-show Livejournal amazingness and impressive modelling career. The way she handled Robin was masterful, her confessionals were hilarious, and her Snake and Nude photos remain among the best top model photos of all time. Overall ranking: 2/269. Cycle 2: April. Every single shot April took was absolutely beautiful. She had composure, personal style, witty intelligence and the presence of a model. Cycle 2 was packed with endearing characters like Mercedes, Shandi and Sara, but April has remained my favorite and, IMO, most deserving of the win. Overall ranking: 14/269. Cycle 3: Nicole. Cycle 3 was my first, and from the first episode I was immediately obsessed with Nicole's incredible, genuine smile. She was obviously too "normal" for Reality TV, receiving very little airtime, but what we did see was a quirky, intelligent bombshell who describes herself as a "rockstar". Awesome. IMO, her portfolio remains the most consistently awesome in Top Model History with not a single bad photograph to speak of. Overall ranking: 10/269. Cycle 4: Kahlen. Pre-show I really liked Naima. Throughout the season, my favorite was Michelle. At various points I have loved Brandy, Tiffany and Brittany for their nuttiness. But standing the test of time is Kahlen, with her meek mousiness, tragic circumstances and killer modeling skills. She was so genuinely sweet and likeable and I really wish she had taken the prize. Overall ranking: 24/269. Cycle 5: Jayla. I am fully prepared to accept my death by firing squad for this choice, but I can't help it. Nik was absolutely stunning, but kind of boring. Lisa was hilarious, but tragic looking. Nicole has loads of potential, but was still a bit green. Coryn has one of my all-time favorite portfolios, but went out too early. I've always been fascinated by Jayla. She was homeschooled and obviously lacking in social skills, and some of her actions were hilariously OTT and ridiculous (her response to being kept up at night? To wear stripper heels on the counter. Her response to somebody being upset with her? To seethe with rage and completely fly off the handle. Hilarious.) Her Whistler's Mother photo is among my all-time favorites, her portfolio is surprisingly consistent, and I find her beautiful, with one of the best makeovers ever on the show. Overall ranking: 25/269. Cycle 6: Joanie. What I loved so much about Joanie is that she was the viewer incarnate: her look was so plain and ordinary that you almost feel it could be you in her shoes - until you realize that with her huge, haunting blue eyes, golden hair and square jaw, she is actually stunning. She said everything the viewer was thinking, from bashing Jade to questioning how the hell Sara made the Top 4. Her photos were consistently amazing, her performance in the Jared Gold and Church fashion shows still give me chills, and her journey to confidence with having her teeth fixed remains one of the most powerful moments on the show. Overall ranking: 4/269. (For the record, Danielle was barely edged out, coming in at #5). Cycle 7: Michelle. This was one of the cycles that I was never crazy about, but Michelle had such an omniscent knowledge that the whole thing was ridiculous that I couldn't help but love her for it. Coming out on national television took a lot of courage, and she obviously really cares for her sister. Her photos ranged from strong to incredible, with her Bulimia photo remaining one of the most haunting and disturbingly beautiful photos produced on the show. In my alternate Top Model universe, Michelle and Amanda made the F2 where Michelle proves Tyra's suspicion that she "doesn't want it enough" by conceding the crown to Amanda. Instead we got Caridee and Caridum as finalists. Yawn. Overall ranking: 29/269. Cycle 8: Jaslene. I'm baaaaaaaaaack! And I'm still spicy! Jaslene was an absolute hoot, from failing the psych exam in Cycle 7 to coming back to win in Cycle 8. I see her get called a "bitch", but what I saw was a razor-sharp focus on her goal that I have seen in few other contestants. She took the crown and ran with it, overcoming her height and proportions to carve out an impressive career and some truly stunning work. "I still walk like this every day, all day" remains a regular part of my daily lexicon. Overall ranking: 7/269. Cycle 9: Jenah. In one of the most head-scratching, jaw-dropping, WTF-am-I-witnessing moments in Top Model History, Tyra successfully brings the too-cool-for-school tough girl who slayed every single photoshoot to tears, completing her story arc into a rounded human being at touch with her mother issues, all thanks to Tyra... only to be eliminated? For her stunning Covergirl photo? Over Tootie from Facts of Life, no less? Jenah was an incredible model, and her refusal to "spew rainbows incessantly" has forever earned her a spot in the Top Model Hall of Awesomeness. Overall ranking: 11/269. Cycle 10: Fatima. Let's just put it out there - Fatima was extremely passive aggressive, and I loved it. Her slick responses to getting screamed at - from "sweetheart, you are not even worth it" to "so, can I call you bitch?" - were absolutely genius, and managed to enrage her opponents into an animal frenzy, all the while looking on beautifully with her satisfied, shit-eating grin. It was a pleasure to watch. But underneath it all was her troubling and inspiring story of FGM and with it came a side of her that was impossible not to be moved by. Her post-show career is one of the most well-rounded and impressive (one of her recent ads remained my iPhone wallpaper for an entire year), and she is without question one of the most stunning girls to ever appear on the show. Overall ranking: 6/269. (Honorable mention to the ever-adorable Anya coming in at #12). Cycle 11: Analeigh. She was adorable, drama-free, quirky, and beautiful. Her friendship with Marjorie, predicated not on mean-girl pack-mentality but on mutual intelligence and respect, was a joy to watch, and Analeigh navigated one of the most drama-filled seasons with ease and grace. Her knack for modelling hit its stride a few weeks in, resulting in some stunning photos and an impressive runway walk, culminating in one of the two best commercials ever done on the show (rivalled only by Nicole Fox) which she parleyed into a Hollywood acting career. Very nicely done, indeed. Overall ranking: 21/269. Cycle 12: Allison. She was simultaneously adorable and disturbing, hilarious and serious, talented yet completely out of her element, resulting in one of the most endearing and intriguing reality TV personas ever. She has by far the most interesting look to ever appear on the show, and her slew of fashion-ready photos and jaw-droppingly improved runway walk, IMO, should have snatched an easy win. Although it was not to be, at least she gets the distinction of my favorite contestant of all time. A big deal, no? Overall ranking: 1/269. Cycle 13: Brittany. Cycle 13 was announced as the "short girl season" dismaying fans everywhere. I was terrified it was an excuse to bring on a pack of Flavor-of-Love caliber girls who would bring the drama and little else. I was pleasantly surprised when Tyra used the opportunity to find a cast of girls with some of the best faces the show had seen, but needed the exposure the show could offer to overcome their height. One of them for me was Brittany, who had so much high-quality pre-show work that modeling was obviously her passion. I loved every photo she produced on the show (even her Look Tall photo that landed her B2, and especially her Native/Indian photo that got her eliminated), she had by far the best runway walk on the show, and I absolutely loved her math nerd personality. She seemed reserved but not shy and extremely intelligent. Her post-show career has been impressive, and her photographic work equally impressive. Overall ranking: 8/269. (Honorable mentions to Erin and Nicole at 13 and 16 respectively). Cycle 14: Tatianna. Cycle 14 was terrible. In fact, it was completely unwatchable,and I have yet to see any episodes after Tatianna's elimination. But I have read recaps, and I am fully aware that all of the girls continuing on in the hopes of becoming America's Next Top Model were just as annoying and horrible as they were before her elimination. Was Tatianna really that great to warrant quitting the show? No, but she was sweet, quirky and confident, and produced a series of stunning photographs, whether she "lucked into them" or not, which is more than I can say for the rest of this pathetic pack. Overall ranking: 60/269. Cycle 15: Chelsey. Thankfully the worst Cycle in the show's history was promptly followed up by the absolute best. Case and point: Chelsey only applied to compete because the prize package and proposed changes to the show were almost too good to be true. Chelsey was a true professional, who approached the entire competition like a job interview. She was extremely knowledgable about the industry, produced stellar photo after stellar photo (including, IMO, the best Covergirl photo ever produced on the show), and boasts one of the best runway walks to date. I love her gap and freckles, and think she is absolutely stunning. Her ability to provide eloquent, succinct and interesting THs quickly made her the narrator of the season, which will have to do since nobody was ever going to topple Ann-of-Five-best-photos. Ah well. Overall ranking: 3/269. Cycle 16: Hannah. This was another season I wasn't crazy about, since all of the girls seemed kind of mean or crazy, despite having the best crop photoshoots the show's ever had. Hannah was the exception, and despite her frequent tears managed to come across level-headed and likeable. She had some great moments on the show including her Bee shoot and Jaguar shoot, and although Brittani fully earned her win, would have been a great alternative. Overall ranking: 61/269. Cycle 18: Louise. Yes, she swore at the judges, sucked on her fingers like a small child, and stormed out on production like a madwoman. But she also threatened to "knock out" Kelly Cutrone, and carries with her a lot of goodwill from her season of BNTM where she was easily the best of the lot. Her time on ANTM was short, but her struggle with self confidence juxtaposed with her headstrong aggressiveness makes her incredibly endearing, and I'll never forget her sheer joy at completing her finale runway show in her season. So crazy though she may be, she will always have a special place in my heart. Overall ranking: 64/269. Cycle 19: Leila. Unfairly bulled by Laura and Kristin, unfairly eliminated for a solid photograph, and fairly brought back into the competition for her stellar body of work, Leila took it all in stride and was a class-act from start to finish. Her look and modelling talent were noteworthy, and IMO deserved the win without question. Overall ranking: 54/269. Cycle 20: Renee. Top Model hit a real dryspell in terms of casting, with nobody from Cycles 16, 18 or 19 really hitting that balance of entertaining, normal and talented. But Tyra finally delivered with Renee, who IMO was the unqualified star of Cycle 20, involved in two of the show's most fascinating relationships. Obviously the first was Marvin, where her disbelieving reactions to this unexpected showmance were extremely endearing, to the point where even a showmance nicknamed "Marnee" didn't turn my stomach. The second was her frenemy relationship with Jourdan, which IMO is easily the most fascinating and well-edited storylines the show has ever seen. At various points they seemed to legitimately like or despise one another, consistently laced together by a competitiveness and knowledge that they are one another's biggest competition. Renee's photos weren't as strong as Jourdan's, but in person she was an absolute knock-out, and her runway walk and ease on camera earned her multiple challenge wins. Tyra missed a real opportunity by not having them face off in the finale, but c'est la vie. Overall ranking: 9/269. Cycle 21: Will. Pending not turning into an asshole, I am loving Will this season. He obviously has a flair for the dramatics, but does so without coming across annoying (see: Cory), and has produced some killer photos. His look is incredible and it's nice to see somebody with his past on the show and handling adversity with such strength. He could easily be toppled by Shei for my favorite in the coming weeks, but only time will tell! Tentative Overall ranking: 17/269.

In the "real world", the leader is the person with the vision, and the person who does the most work is the for-hire seamster, which is exactly how I saw the Amanda/Kini relationship play itself out. That isn't to say that Kini is a poor designer, but he was clearly out of his element working with such bright, plastic materials and allowed Amanda to make most of the conceptual decisions while he offered his sewing skills. It was a wonderful partnership, but in the real world, Amanda would have taken home the fatter paycheque. Now, in the Project Runway context, I didn't question Kini's win. The judges' favorite piece was the Soccer Ball dress that Kini was responsible for, and this challenge did not have designated leaders, so it was a reasonable decision. That said, if the team had been on the bottom, Amanda would have been sent home for her "vision", so I would have liked to see her also reap the benefits for her risk. But c'est la vie - it wasn't nearly as egregious as Helen winning for the Sombrero dress that had Kate written all over it.

Yeah, this season actually had a good cast (I would kill for the return of half these people) but it was so boring. I blame the terrible format of team captains and no elimination round. The only thing I remember fondly is Ibis somehow eating three sticks of butter in thirty seconds.

To this day Steve remains my alltime favorite Challenger/RW/RR Alumni. It certainly is bizarre that somebody so strange is too "normal" for a show like this and got very little airtime and hasn't been brought back. Maybe he can be on Rivals III paired up with Trishelle.

I wasn't particularly annoyed by what Denzel said in the bedroom with Keith, which is why I'm not ready to lump Keith in with Denzel. It was narrowminded and silly, but it sounded like your garden variety douchebag locker room bullshit. Was Will's reaction justified? Absolutely. He has interacted with this person on a personal level and has a history of being judged for his sexuality. But I wasn't quite ready to rake Denzel over the coals for saying what a very large amount of straight men might be thinking in his situation. That said, Denzel's reaction to the situation afterward was absolutely disgusting. He was aggressively confrontational, insensitive to Will's feelings, and bigoted toward both women and gay men by categorizing these groups as "cowardly" and "passive aggressive". Even after he had things explained to him he seemed unwilling to reevaluate his stance on HeelsGate. Add in his treatment of Mirjana and I am done with him. Who'da thunk Adam would somehow avoid the bottom spot this cycle? This cycle seems to have a nucleus of decent human beings that I would want to be friends with (Raelia, Will, Lenox, Shei, Matthew), alongside a bunch of gross side characters (Adam, Romeo) and Prom Couples (Denzel/Mirjana, Keith/Kari). I am really hoping for a F4 of Will, Lenox, Shei and Matthew, but I am thinking some combo of Keith, Denzel, Mirjana and Adam may sneak in there. Ick.

Apologies, I should have added the "Kathleen" to indicate S9 Laura, but I hate the name "Laura Kathleen" and tend to omit it.

I love Korina's collection - I have it almost on par with Fade's as my favorite. But unfortunately decoy collections looking more luxe and expensive than the finalist collections is pretty common (see also: Bert, Laura, Kara, Elena). As it stands, I am pulling for Amanda for both personality and strength of collection, but I am still not particularly blown away by hers - it's just the best of the designers still in the competition. I am expecting a Sean win even though I think his collection is boring and shows very little growth, but it's certainly better than Kini and Char's efforts. On a spoiler-y note, the presentation order leaves little question that Emily will be axed this week. The only remaining question is whether we have a F3 of Char/Sean/Kini or a F4 including Amanda. I, obviously, am hoping for the latter.

Given the order they presented, I think it’s fairly obvious that we are looking at a F4 of Amanda, Sean, Char and Kini. Sorry Emily, but you are yet another victim of the favoritism toward Char. From least to most favorite: I was actually pleasantly surprised by Char’s collection at first glance because it had potential. However, there was something I actively disliked about every look. And if she had removed the element that I dislike from each one, she’d be left with boring clothing going down the runway, not fashion. The print and early use of blue are nice, but the looks themselves don’t have enough relation shapewise to the other looks to remain cohesive. 4/10. Alexander started and ended strong, as the blouse/pant combo and off-the-shoulder blouse and fringe skirt were strong looks. With everything inbetween, I get where he’s trying to go, but they all fell flat by being either unflattering or straight-up boring. Nice to see what “one of the most talented designers Tim Gunn’s ever met” has to offer. 5/10. Kini’s collection is a extremely disappointing. I love the cohesion and use of wearable separates, but some of the pleating looks dated (1st, 8th, 9th), the proportion of the shoulders makes the models look boxy (9th, 10th), and the only look I truly enjoyed was the denim dress with white shoulders. Everything else bores me. 5/10. Emily's collection was one of my most anticipated, so color me disappointed. The only look I truly dislike is the first dress (proportions – yikes!), but the following 6 looks (green top and print skirt excepted) all have redeeming elements alongside proportion problems that I’m not feeling. Her last 3 looks are beautiful – the silver dress and white jacket and sheer silver top/skirt are absolute perfection, and although I’m not a fan of the sheer romper in the finale look, the coat is stunning. 6/10. This is the first time I started to “get” Sandhya’s aesthetic: her opening dress, short dress with characters, yellow and blue top/skirt and especially her LBD are stunning and make genius use of odd combinations and graphic lettering. That said, her collection lacks cohesiveness and is all over the place. I like, but find extraneous, her use of mesh “shells” on her final two looks, and find her 2nd, 3rd, and 6th looks very dull departures from her inventiveness that neither add to or merge the collection’s disparate parts. 6/10. Sean took two trends I’m not fond of – nightgowns and heavy fringe – and managed to bang out three stellar looks. I love the opening look, the draped dress with sleeves, and the closing orange gown. The rest is varying shades of “meh”, but I can admit that it’s largely because I just don’t like the aesthetic. It is overall a decent collection. 6/10. I liked every piece in Amanda’s collection. That said, I wish she hadn’t went with the camel and black/white print to tie the collection together as they work much better in some looks than others. She improved some of the ideas she fleshed out during the show (vests, volume, slouchy pants) and managed to make a modern retro collection without using any fringe! My favorite looks include #4 (slouchy jumpsuit shorts) and the blue finale gown. 7/10. I am impressed by how effortlessly Korina married her moto jacket fetish with her Southwestern influences. Some of the shapes skew little house on the prairie (2nd, 6th), and I would have cut the teal entirely (royal blue, yellow and red make a great color story), but this collection has some very strong looks (1st, 3rd, and 10th in particular). 8/10. Dear Sandhya: this is how you make a bold statement using type. Fade’s collection is wearable, cool, and beautiful. It manages to look young without losing any sophistication. Aside from the orange tank/blue skirt (look 5) this collection got 7s and 8s across the board from me. The breakaway look is the orange/red/grey dress, and the model in look 9 summarizes the collection perfectly: fun, but still beautiful. 9/10. So I guess my favorite of everybody left competing is Amanda’s, but decoy collections tend to be stronger so I shouldn’t be surprised. I will also accept a win from Sean, but Char and Kini’s collections left me very cold.

If Korina sent 12 consecutive southwest looks down the runway I don't see why that should be a problem - that is her aesthetic. She has shown so many variations on this theme that she can't be accused of "one trick pony". If she had relied on southwest prints to get her POV across, then yes, she is lacking range. But the judges are constantly going on about showing who they are as a designer, and I think Korina has done a passable job interpreting her regional inspiration into various challenges. I think Korina's behaviour was pretty gross, but it is overshadowed by my frustration that Char is still there. IMO she is the second weakest designer to ever make Top 5. I agreed with Korina that the sew off was bullshit. Korina's work had more redeeming design elements and her track record is far and away better than Char's. And that's not even getting into the fact that Char's one hour dress had Sean written all over it. It looked nothing even remotely like anything Char has designed and I wished the judges had pointed that out and at least rewarded Korina for her ambition and commitment to her POV. Obviously Korina's attitude makes it hard for me to feel particularly badly for her, but on a selfish level, I was looking forward to seeing more of her work, whereas I think Char should have gone home instead of Fade and Alexander, and shouldn't have gotten the save over Kristine in the first place.

Oh my gosh, I am so conflicted. This season has some of my all-time favorites returning - Dmitry, Fabio, Kate, and Chris. I also really like justin, Patricia and Gunnar's personalities, and Samantha's return completes the trifecta of robbed beauties from Season 11 returning. Sonjia had some killer designs herself, and I can look past Michelle's rankness at her talent. But Helen. I just can't. Especially since she will be pit against Alexandria, forcing me to root for somebody that I found overrated throughout her entire season, and will continue to suck the otherwise lovely Kate into her mean girl vortex. And Benjamin. I hated looking at him, I hated listening to him, and I hated his designs. I am hoping Jay has grown up a bit, because he was one of only two designers I disliked in the otherwise glorious Season 7 (the other was waterworks Janeane). His dismissiveness toward Mila was unnecessary and he had such an air of superiority. Ick. Hearing the first three eliminations makes me sad, so I am hoping Fabio and Dmitry will bring the awesome to keep me on board.

Topping my wish list would be Alison from Big Brother. She was interesting, athletic and the right amount of bitchy. Plus, she hasn't been shoved down my throat at all in the last eight years and was out early in BB:AS and TAR. Next would be Hayden because I actually quite liked him on Survivor and think he would do well on the Race. I despise Big Brother so as much as I like Amber, Rob, Ethan and Jenna, I wouldn't want a reason to have to watch. Jeff and Jordan are fine, but I think they would suck at Survivor. Brendon, Rachel, Whitney and Keith are all disgusting.

The Allstars Tribal swap had the same result - 6 Chaperas/6 men and 5 Mogos/5 women resulting in a homogenous 5-5 split, with Chase/Amber the odd one out. The difference is they picked buffs from a bag onscreen in Allstars. But I still don't think the producers rigged the Nicaragua IC.

I still don't really think Korina's a bitch. I think she's socially awkward and lives by a "tell it like it is" doctrine, which is a dangerous combination. if she was truly a bitch I think we would have seen a lot more aggression from her this week instead of her awkwardly dancing around Amanda the entire episode. I do, however, think she's kind of stupid. If Amanda hadn't finished her pants, Korina was sending out a model with no pants. Plain and simple. Korina simply doesn't have the skills to finish a pair of pants in 30 minutes considering she couldn't finish a basic slip dress in 6 hours the episode before. She's one of those contestants who must not be adapting well to the time constraints because I really liked her rack in the casting episode. Everything she's designed since has been basic and uninspired.

I agree that associating with bullies can speak volumes about a person - watching Season 8's groupthink under the odious Gretchen and Ivy's tutelage was painful to watch and has soured my opinion of Christopher, Valerie, Drummond, April et. al. But I just don't recall Michelle being that terrible to people's faces - not to say that this excuses her behavior, but it wasn't something Amanda was present for. She was certainly whiney and self-absorbed, and perhaps there were deleted scenes of Amanda and Michelle backbiting everybody in the corner together. But as it was presented, Amanda and Michelle got along, and Michelle took enjoyment from smack talking people in her confessionals. To me the two events aren't related.

This. It blows my mind watching such a vibrant, magnetic actress like LH completely shrink away to a plank of wood in their scenes together. There is absolutely zero chemistry between them, and I find her character insufferable when she's with, or talking about, Ezra. But otherwise I think she's great, and I even love her wardrobe. But she is still miles and miles below the other three girls, which is interesting considering I got into the show because of LH.

If it's being used to combat the reliance on "Amanda liked Michelle so she must be terrible" then it has its merits. I totally get not liking Michelle, but about 95% of the terrible things she said were in confessionals, which Amanda was not privy to. As for them continuing to communicate after the show, people have layers and I believe that under the right circumstances I would also be friends with Michelle, especially if I got to know her before seeing how she spoke about my colleagues in confessionals. Production requires their hamsters to answer with the question, so she is forced to either say "I have an advantage at mood because ____" or just flat-out disagree with the statement which would be disingenuous. I don't see how watering down what she's saying with "wells" and "i means" will accomplish anything beyond making the producers scrap her confessionals for meandering around the point. It would make me think she was trying to lessen how massive the advantage of being a returning designer is, which people would be jumping all over her for. For the record, I have no problem with people not liking Amanda. I can understand how elements of her personality could be irritating. But I still don't see her being "smug", and I don't think associating with Michelle is fair evidence that she sucks.

His penchant for saying that things "got him off" was completely unnecessary. I may not have squicked out as much if Uli or Alison were the ones saying it, and maybe that's not fair of me, but it really, for lack of better words, "turned me off".

I haven't followed Michelle's post-show career (and from what I understand she's been a bit of a brat), but Michelle's Season 11 crimes were similar to that of Meana Irina: she said terrible things in her confessionals. In terms of face-to-face interactions, I felt Michelle was always exceedingly professional. It was enormously fake and cringeworthy, but in a professional environment, "fake" is important, as it prevented any unnecessary drama. I disliked Michelle, but I don't think she was a completely deplorable human being, and I don't think associating with her makes Amanda her Beelzebub. Besides, by that logic, Amanda must be just as amazing as the loveable Fade! I find their friendship adorable and hope they have room for a third wheel.