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S11.E10: The Final


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The last three bakers face three tests of a range of baking skills - a deceptively simple Signature round combining set custard and puff pastry, a Technical celebrating the classic combination of chocolate and nuts, and a magnificent dessert tower for their final Showstopper, before judges Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood select this year's winner.

 

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You know, when the episode was about to start I decided to root for Laura, because girlpower and stuff. Jinxed it. That was really hard to watch and Twitter was not kind to her either. With the tightened schedule, away from her husband and those summer temperatures it is really hard to cope and recover mentally and physically between episodes. It looked like Laura couldn't catch herself once she started stumbling. Shame, because she is a very upbeat girl whith a great plus size fashion style. In between the moaning on Social Media there were quite a few compliments for her dresses.

There is a funny side to Laura trying to hide in the freezer. About a year ago,  Boris Johnson tried to hide in a walk in freezer to avoid media questions in the runup to the election. After the opening sketch this puts a nice bookend to the series.

Peter's and Dave's custard slices looked enticing - and I don't even like custard sliced. I do like whalnut whips and the final challenge was OK in my book too. Laura and Dave's bake looked scrumptious. That rice crispy thing put me right off Peter's.

Peter won? I dunno, I thought Dave had a better weekend.

Overall, I think the editing this year was really bad.

Matt and Noel give good pep talks.

I hope someone made good use of Mr. Spoon on bonfire night and we never have to see it again.

Lovely dedication to Luis, who passed away a few weeks ago, at the end.

Edited by Aulty
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1 hour ago, Aulty said:

You know, when the episode was about to start I decided to root for Laura, because girlpower and stuff. Jinxed it. That was really hard to watch and Twitter was not kind to her either.

I would have rooted for her too because of the unnecessary backlash she got after she survived last week but then I thought the Twitter hate would have been worse had she won. I was hoping that she'd be spared the grief.  I'm sad to hear that she's still getting grief.

I'm glad Peter won even though I have yet to see the episode.  

Edited by Irlandesa
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Haven't seen the episode yet, but was accidentally spoiled on Facebook. 

The cynical side of me feels like Peter won because it makes for the best story- the boy who watched Bake Off has now won it. I sense producer manipulation at work here. 

Hoping that feeling changes once I'm able to actually watch the episode though. 

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Well, this time, I made sure to stay off of social media until I could watch, so, I wasn't spoiled:

Signature: No passion fruit in sight, thank God. 

Coffee caramel custard, I need it. 

Laura flubs on the execution/presentation, again. She does well on the flavor, which has been what has gotten her to the final. 

Technical: Walnut Whirls sound amazing. Coffee ganache, marshmallow, sign me up. 

Laura screws up the execution again. 3rd. "Worst of a good bunch?" No. Hers weren't set at all. 

Noel: Key party comment, "Do you think that will stay in?" Ha. 

Showstopper: 

I love Dave's idea of using elements that he failed at, instead of redoing elements that were successful. Very risky, but, unique. 

If Laura wins, I'll be very mad. 

Funny watching Dave finish early, snacking, and him watching Peter and Laura stress to the finish. 

Laura's finished product is not a "wow" at all, collectively. 

It seems that Peter's showstopper was the best, overall. 

Oh, good, Laura can't win. Her execution on the bakes is not worthy of winning the whole thing. Flavors alone can't save you forever. 

Peter won!!!!!!!!!!! YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Lovely. Completely deserved. I so enjoyed him throughout the whole season. Well done, lad!!!!!!! Youngest-ever winner, and first Scottish winner!

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5 hours ago, Aulty said:

Peter won? I dunno, I thought Dave had a better weekend.

I'm in the camp who thinks they plumped for Peter's story of growing up watching the show and decided that would be an excellent victory narrative.

I have a lot of thoughts about these last few weeks of Bake Off, but all I can really be bothered to say is congratulations to the finalists. The season, especially the ending, was so lackluster and vaguely irritating that it's hard to put into words. Except that Dave's baby is cute.

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When Laura said she was added to acidic juices to her gelatin, I yelled at the television that it wouldn’t set. How do people at this level not know too low pH denatures gelatin? Add to that how strange is was that Paul blamed her using “too many flavours” when it was the acid of the flavors that caused the issue. 
I thought Dave should have won. Peter makes a good winner too since he excelled throughout the competition. All my favorites were eliminated week after week. 
I still miss Sandy. 

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Well, that was anti-climactic. 

I had Peter pegged as one of the finalists during week one, but his showstopper this week was a bit lackluster visually. I know that taste matters more, but it’s a showstopper AND the finale so I expect something impressive looking. 

Dave’s was by far the best looking showstopper and Noel/Matt pointed out that the critiques of Dave and Peter in the final round were neck and neck, which made me think Dave would win. I really appreciated that he made a conscious effort to redeem himself by making things he’d received negative comments about earlier in the season. To me, that said he really wanted to work hard and prove that he was learning and not just going back to the things he had done well. It was risky and I thought he did a pretty good job. I could tell that his cake had a beautiful texture just by looking at it!

Laura’s signature looked like it had been made by a very young and messy child. It looked just terrible. I know Paul raves about her flavors (and for the record, I don’t dislike her) but it seems strange that someone who made it to the finale has made so many awful looking things. Flavor is important but so is presentation!

I’m sure the walnut things taste fine but they looked like nutty piles of poop emojis to me. 

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I found it telling that neither Dave nor Laura had made sable before (or knew what it was, even?), or marshmallows, so I was not surprised that Peter came through in the end. I can't recall which of his elements in the showstopper weren't perfect & think they oversold that in the discussion at the end a bit, although if they said it was the closest it's ever been, I'll assume it really must have been pretty close. While I didn't like the idea of using the rice krispie thing for Peter's presentation, in the end it wasn't really a tasting element & his showstopper looked much more attractive to me than Dave's (his base was great, but then, like Laura, he just sort of piled stuff on top of it.) Then again, I often haven't particularly liked his aesthetic, so maybe it's just me. 

Congrats to all three. If I'm asking for recipes, I'll ask for Laura's. I don't really care that much about presentation, & my best bakes are, shall we say rustic, because the pastry is best when I handle it as little as possible.

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I was rooting for Dave, but neither he nor Peter's show-stoppers stopped my show. I blame the producers for coming up with these requirements that seem to make it nearly impossible to do a beautiful design. 

I didn't feel Laura belonged in the finale. She was out of her depth, and looked utterly defeated and joyless throughout all three bakes. It was hard to watch, as I both felt bad for her, but also wished someone else was there who might have been a real darkhorse contender. 

Noel forcing everyone to kiss Mr. Spoon was stupid and made me a bit uncomfortable. I hope they tweak the hosts again before next season. I'll give Noel another chance; but pair him with someone more mature to balance him out. He was too junveile this series. 

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When Laura served up yet another underbaked/unset dessert... it just showed again that this wasn't her time and she should have been gone weeks ago. She seems like a lovely woman and saying she was out of her depth is not ~hate. I very much am the baker that cannot decorate or make things look good, which is why when friends/family told me to try out for Canadian Bake Off, I laughed. So I understand her, I'm sure I'd go for her bakes at a potluck because they would taste the best and I really do not care about presentation.

However, this is a baking show. This is a show for home bakers, sure. But near the end it is always about presentation, and learning, and showing that you learned. They harp on ~making it look good all the time so for this year to just waive that requirement (for a single baker) is mindboggling. 

I thought Peter's showstopper looked the best because of the separate layers. David's top layer looked like a bunch of things placed randomly on a plate.  I think he's a good winner because he showed growth and also new techniques and he took everything in stride. 

What a weird season this was. 

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Peter! I haven’t watched every season — has anyone else ever been the favorite out of the gate and actually won?

I didn’t think the challenges were very difficult this week especially for the finale.

I laughed at Noel’s pep talk to Laura when he told her, “You’ve come back from worse.” I know he didn’t mean it to be a backhanded compliment, but it emphasized she was consistently out of her depth. Ironic she couldn’t get her gelatin to set when Hermine got sent home because her gelatin was rubbery.

Given the challenges and having to create a format to minimize the isolation time, I think the show did a great job.

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Not sure why this still says "unaired in the us" as I just watch it ;).

Anyhow, I'm very happy for Peter. I'm glad they said how close it was between him and Dave. I didn't realize that a Scottish person never won. I do wonder if Peter's housemates (well classmates in general) would now know that he won as it has aired on TV. Before they probably didn't know he was on the show and he couldn't say what happened. I totally got teary-eyed when they showed Dave with his baby. And as usual loved the where are they now segment at the end. Though there were way less of them that participated in it.

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On 11/25/2020 at 4:46 AM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Dave’s was by far the best looking showstopper

I felt otherwise-- Peter's was more attractive to me- I liked the fun, random, design that he promised we'd get. I thought Dave might pull it out as his technical was better. But I guess technicals don't really count much, and Dave's cream puffs really didn't look great. I think it really WAS close rather than just what they always say. It was clear from the first 10 minutes that it wasn't going to be Laura. 

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Whoever came up with that cockamamie showstopper idea should be fired.  Absolutely none of them looked at all tempting, just a pile of mismatched items.  If I saw that in a bakery window I'd keep on walking.

Laura never had a chance at winning and, as has been said, not only does it need to taste good it needs to look good.  It really was a close call between the guys.  I didn't really root for one over the other but you knew from the get go that Laura was not a contender.

On 11/24/2020 at 4:28 PM, Aulty said:

I hope someone made good use of Mr. Spoon on bonfire night and we never have to see it again.

Lord, yes.  That was the most idiotic, obnoxious "comedy" element in the world.  For that matter, toss Noel and Matt on the fire as well.  I had to fast forward whenever they were on screen.  I find their "humor" to be totally infantile.

I did like the shout out at the end to the behind-the-scenes workers who made it all possible.  Living in a bubble for that length of time must have been quite brutal.

Next time, try filming in spring or autumn or ditch the recipes that will melt in the heat.  Climate shift is not a myth, people.

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I wonder if Noel gets bored and tries to see what he can get on-air. A key party joke? In the US you don't make key party jokes in a professional environment or among strangers in a polite setting. Is it a cultural thing that the editors left it in? Noel knew he was pushing boundaries.

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I just watched the finale and didn’t notice the key party joke from Noel. When did he say it?

i was happy to see Peter win. Would have been fine with Dave, as well. I like Laura but it was clear she was out of contention when her signature looked so awful.

Edited by Michichick
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I don’t have a lot of criticism for what the bakers were tested on this episode. 
 

I like Laura, but she should not have been in the final.  She has shown time and time again that her execution is her weak point, and this episode was no exception.  I think this would have been a more interesting final with Hermine.

That being said, I was hoping that Peter won.  I would have been happy with Dave winning, but I’m glad that Peter won.

The biggest bit of cringe was Noel convincing contestants to kiss Mr. Spoon and the non-socially distant, non-masked finale crowd.  Did they forget the pandemic was still a thing?  The finale just turned into The Great British Superspreader.

 

 

 

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2 hours ago, dleighg said:

I felt otherwise-- Peter's was more attractive to me- I liked the fun, random, design that he promised we'd get. I thought Dave might pull it out as his technical was better. But I guess technicals don't really count much, and Dave's cream puffs really didn't look great. I think it really WAS close rather than just what they always say. It was clear from the first 10 minutes that it wasn't going to be Laura. 

I'm on the same page that it was very close between David and Peter.  Their signatures were both excellent, the technicals were very close (but they never seem to count it anyway) so it came down to stodgy cookies vs. flat/under-baked cream puffs and over-baked babka.  Really tight. In the end, David won the biggest prize--his new healthy baby.

In this competition, a person only has to be a little less bad than the worst person that week. Kind of like the old story about running away from a bear and having to only outrun the person you're with, not the bear.  Laura was able to do that, and benefitted from others having a single shitty week.  If the rules were to take into account previous bakes, that would be another story.  I didn't mind Laura and she seemed very kind.  Besides, how many times have they berated bakers for style over substance?  She was rewarded for substance over style.

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20 minutes ago, Yajmele said:

 

The biggest bit of cringe was Noel convincing contestants to kiss Mr. Spoon and the non-socially distant, non-masked finale crowd.  Did they forget the pandemic was still a thing?  The finale just turned into The Great British Superspreader.

 

The people at the end were the hotel, medical and crew that had been with them in the bumble the whole time. I got the impression that they too haven't seen their families in months and were living at the hotel. Where they also were filming, as the tent was just outside. I totally agree about the spoon though, I fastforward that part.

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18 minutes ago, Yajmele said:

The biggest bit of cringe was Noel convincing contestants to kiss Mr. Spoon and the non-socially distant, non-masked finale crowd.  Did they forget the pandemic was still a thing?  The finale just turned into The Great British Superspreader.

The crowd consisted of all of the cast and crew that had been quarantined together for the entire time. the "Baking Show Bubblers". So no worries about spreading anything.

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On 11/24/2020 at 4:28 PM, Aulty said:

With the tightened schedule, away from her husband and those summer temperatures it is really hard to cope and recover mentally and physically between episodes. It looked like Laura couldn't catch herself once she started stumbling.

Based on the video message, it sounded like Dave was away from his partner for the duration, too, which must also have been tough. I really admired his decision to bake things he previously struggled with and felt bad that it didn't pay off for him, but Peter for the most part performed consistently well all season and I thought he was a worthy winner.

Not my favorite season, but the updates were especially welcome this year given how long it might be before we can start getting together in the US like they were shown doing (though I know England is back in lockdown now). I also loved that Rowan learned to make his own waistcoats, the sweet clip of Dave and his newborn, and the tribute to Luis.

Edited by krankydoodle
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1 hour ago, cynicat said:

I'm on the same page that it was very close between David and Peter.  Their signatures were both excellent, the technicals were very close (but they never seem to count it anyway) so it came down to stodgy cookies vs. flat/under-baked cream puffs and over-baked babka.

The thing is, I've stopped believing them when they talk about stodgy biscuits and whatnot, and I especially don't believe that it was at all close between David and Peter, because of the strategic way Hermine was sent home last episode, which mirrors what happened in last year's final.

See, just like last year's final, you had two relatively calm bakers and one who was melt-down city, every time, and that's not a coincidence. Ever since the show came off the BBC, it's been increasing in the whole reality-tv factor and decreasing the competitive baking aspect.

If Hermine had come through and Laura had been sent home, we would have had three bakers just doing their best, a bit of a flurry, but no major melt-downs. That clearly wasn't enough for the show production, who wanted DRAMA! and PEP TALKS! Hermine wouldn't have stuck her head in the freezer because her custard wouldn't set - she would have just got on with it. And Peter would have had some competition - I still wanted him to win, though: he was my favourite from episode 1. But don't nitpick some crap about 'stodgy' this or that, to make it seem like it was close. It wasn't close. David chose to redo all the bakes he'd failed in before - very commendable, but it set him up for failure in at least one.

I've been rewatching the finale to Season 8 recently - even though it was already the new format, I feel it was the last one with a real, honest finale, containing my favourite Bake Off Winner, and the two other bakers who gave him real competition without the manufactured drama. Also, it has Sandi Toksvig, who blew Sue and Mel out of the water and was a much better foil to Noel than Matt.

The only time I liked Matt this season was when he was either piling on the Scouse to imitate Paul or faking a Scottish accent to read the instructions to Peter, to his obvious delight (I love Peter so much!). The rest of the time his shtick was unfunny or even actively annoying - I know if I'd been trying to bake during the heat death of the universe (seriously, GBBO, stop baking in August and expecting it to be cool) and had been faced with this unfunny asshole I might have hit him over the head with a mixing bowl.

 

Edited by arjumand
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I slightly preferred that Dave would win.  It seems possible that there was some producer preference for Peter, but nothing obvious or ridiculous.  I felt sorry for Laura; it would have taken a miracle for her to win.  Her flavors were always praised but her presentations were always a mess.  It would have been a more unpredictable competition with Hermine in the final.

I wish that past performance could be a component of the judging.  Someone like Hermine, who was great most of the time, could have a disaster that knocks them out too soon and a lesser competitor wins.  Nothing against Laura - she was very good, but just not at the level to make it to the final.

Incidentally, it is sickening that Laura is taking a beating on social media.  Social media is the antithesis of civilization.

Also, adding, I have never warmed up to Noel and he was worse this season.  Matt might be alright with someone else.

Edited by Suzn
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4 hours ago, Kohola3 said:

Whoever came up with that cockamamie showstopper idea should be fired.  Absolutely none of them looked at all tempting, just a pile of mismatched items.  If I saw that in a bakery window I'd keep on walking.

 

Yes, 1,000 times yes.  The only way any of these were a "Showstopper" is that they would stop people in their tracks to wonder aloud "what the fuck is that monstrosity???"  What a horrible concept.  I thought Dave's approach to this ridiculous idea was the best of the 3, so I give him that.

Peter - I had pegged him for the winner in one of the first few episodes.  I never call this right, so I'm happy I finally did.  I would have been fine with Dave winning as well.  Laura...  oh, she just was out of her element.  Had she not done test bakes with that custard before?  I do think Laura should look into doing something on a professional level, though, because she certainly has a knack for winning flavors.  There has to be something she can do with that.  I don't know what - maybe partner with another baker who has better final execution.  But she has always received high marks on flavor, so that is her strong point.

One question on Peter...  the very end shots said Peter's flatmates didn't even know he was on the show.  Do they have to keep this a secret?  Obviously families know, since bakers are calling them each week.  I wonder what the rules are on that.  Was he not allowed to tell, or did he choose to keep it a secret?

 

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49 minutes ago, krankydoodle said:

Not my favorite season, but the updates were especially welcome this year given how long it might be before we can start getting together in the US like they were shown doing (though I know England is back in lockdown now). I also loved that Rowan learned to make his own waistcoats, the sweet clip of Dave and his newborn, and the tribute to Luis.

That and the inclusion of the crew, medics and hotel staff that shared the Bubble with them were my favorite part of the whole season. 

The bakers were fine, there were some I loved, many I liked and none that I really didn't like, but this season I could not stand Noel and Matt. They really brought this season down for me.

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3 minutes ago, chaifan said:

One question on Peter...  the very end shots said Peter's flatmates didn't even know he was on the show.  Do they have to keep this a secret? 

I thought that was odd as well.  Where did they think he's disappeared to for, what, 7 weeks?  Maybe it was covered by Covid quarantining or something.

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5 minutes ago, Kohola3 said:

I thought that was odd as well.  Where did they think he's disappeared to for, what, 7 weeks?  Maybe it was covered by Covid quarantining or something.

I was wondering, I can't remember if they ever said, if it was his school flat mates, who just assumed he went home like everyone else did for lockdown. It's the only way I can think of that they wouldn't know.

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54 minutes ago, krankydoodle said:

Based on the video message, it sounded like Dave was away from his wife for the duration, too, which must also have been tough.

Dave and his partner are not married. 

7 minutes ago, chaifan said:

One question on Peter...  the very end shots said Peter's flatmates didn't even know he was on the show.  Do they have to keep this a secret?  Obviously families know, since bakers are calling them each week.  I wonder what the rules are on that.  Was he not allowed to tell, or did he choose to keep it a secret?

Peter's flatmates are the guys he lives with at uni(versity).  Since this was filmed in the summertime, it's not like he had to sneak away from them for a couple of months to stay in the quarantined hotel. 

In normal circumstances, the bakers go home for the week between challenges, and then head back to the tent to bake on Saturday and Sunday.  They may be encouraged not to talk to the local media about things like getting eliminated, but the family surely knows if they don't disappear on a weekend.  I doubt that production forces them to come back to the filming site after they've been booted.  But that's just my opinion.

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I'm very happy Peter won (was rooting for him), although I would've been fine with Dave winning as well.  I didn't really think Dave was going to be one of the finalists but he has really improved over the duration of the competition.  It really was neck to neck.  I thought Dave had a slight edge based on the judge's comments on the signature/show stopper and that he won the technical.  

Does Peter wear lipstick?  His lips are always really pink/reddish.

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3 hours ago, Yajmele said:

 

The biggest bit of cringe was Noel convincing contestants to kiss Mr. Spoon and the non-socially distant, non-masked finale crowd.  Did they forget the pandemic was still a thing?  The finale just turned into The Great British Superspreader.

 

 

 

That was the people they had been in the bubble with all along. They've been interacting for 7 weeks; I doubt any superspreading happened there.

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Was the showstopper one they were given only after they knew they’d be in the final?  I’m asking since Dave chose things he hadn’t done well during the season. If they only had a day or two to design and practice, that may explain why they looked so thrown together. 
 

Noel has irritated the you-know-what out of me this season, but I loved how he really tried to cheer Laura up. I missed that Noel. Except for Mr. Spoon, neither he nor Matt were as annoying this episode as they have been. 

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24 minutes ago, weightyghost said:

It said they didn't know HOW FAR he got. They knew he was on the show.

and at the end he said that his flatmates said they had a shelf for his cake stand. So it certainly wasn't a surprise at the point he went back to his flat.

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The caption on one of the pictures in the end montage said "Peter is back at university... his flatmates had no idea he was on the series."   And, yeah, I forgot about the comment about the shelf...  So, still confused...

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14 minutes ago, chaifan said:

The caption on one of the pictures in the end montage said "Peter is back at university... his flatmates had no idea he was on the series."   And, yeah, I forgot about the comment about the shelf...  So, still confused...

According to my closed captioning, the comment was:  "My flatmates told me there was a really nice shelf in our new flat that I can shove it on."  SO they may well have not known he was on but after he won they let him know that there was a place for the award.

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I teared up when I read the dedication: "To everyone getting us through 2020."

And I have no problem with a Pete win.  Hermine should have been in Laura's place, but I'm not going to be a soggy bottom about it on social media.

Also-also Dave's baby is the sweetest thing I've seen on this show.

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7 hours ago, Michichick said:

I just watched the finale and didn’t notice the key party joke from Noel. When did he say it?

It was literally about 30 minutes in when the judges and hosts were discussing the bakes before the showstopper, and it it started thundering while Prue was talking. They were discussing if God was agreeing/disagreeing with Prue, and Noel made a joke that no one would disagree because they wouldn't want to be disinvited from Prue's next dinner party...because everyone knew it'd be a key party. 

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