S20.E13: Social Media in Hell/S20.E14: Hell Hath No Fury...

[jewel21]

Quote

It’s all about the presentation when the chefs are challenged to create visually stunning dishes to impress Chef Ramsay’s 7.5 million Instagram followers. Then, during the challenge, a clash of egos causes tensions to run high, and during a dinner service filled with sabotage, the chefs struggle to prove they have what it takes to be Chef Ramsay’s next head chef.

Airdate: 09/06/2021

[mojoween]

If you didn’t want Steve’s jacket, THEN WHY CUT HIM.  Brynn isn’t going to get any more mature in the next three weeks for fuck’s sake.

That was dumb.  

Bad look for Kiya in ep 2.  I wonder why the show wanted her to look like such bitter bittercakes?

 

Edited September 7, 2021 by mojoween

[jewel21]

I would have kept Brynn over Kiya. Kiya is showing herself to be a sore and bitter loser. 

[EllaWycliffe]

Does anyone really believe that they shoveled all that sand?

[Ms Blue Jay]

Ugh, they were my two favourites.

Gordon on Brynn:  "As soon as she learns how to control her emotions, she'll be a great chef". Yes exactly what Gordon is known for.  Controlling his emotions.

If anyone got a bad edit these past two episodes, it was Trenton.  His attitude was such a major turn off!  I would have been just as annoyed as Kiya.

Edited September 7, 2021 by Ms Blue Jay

[Chicago Redshirt]

Well, I will give it to HK for surprising me by getting rid of the two most photogenic contestants they had left back to back. I said at least a few times that it was most likely that one of them would win since they were in shape and fit the mold of a "winner."

That said, I would have booted Brynn over Steven and Kiya over Brynn, so what do I know?

Let's see if I can bounce back from my prognostication failures:

My prediction is that Megan wins it all.

I don't think Kiya has a chance. Too coarse and unsophisticated.

I think Trenton has obviously been doing really well. But the notion that he has apparently engendered this feud with Kya probably doesn't speak well of him. 

[Such A Flirt]

This is weird, we only got the first episode where I live; the second hour was The Bachelor or whatever.

Really bummed about Steve, I honestly thought he would win the whole thing. So I guess I'm rooting for Megan now.

[EllaWycliffe]

4 minutes ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

I don't think Kiya has a chance. Too coarse and unsophisticated.

Agreed but maybe a protégé edit - she can be molded into another Christina... maybe.

And frankly she's less flaky than Brynn under pressure, can't deny that. 

[mojoween]

5 hours ago, EllaWycliffe said:

Does anyone really believe that they shoveled all that sand?

Considering how much sand Kiya and Brynn were putting on each shovelful?  No.

[Sir RaiderDuck OMS]

8 hours ago, mojoween said:

If you didn’t want Steve’s jacket, THEN WHY CUT HIM.

Ramsay letting anyone keep their jackets is rare, and a major sign of respect from him.

 

5 hours ago, EllaWycliffe said:

Does anyone really believe that they shoveled all that sand?

My guess is they probably had to do it for an hour or so, then were told to go back in.

I like how the show FINALLY acknowledged that the HK restaurant we see on the show is not the actual HK restaurant at Caesars Palace.

The right two people went home. Brynn's anxiety attacks during service are a major problem, and this was the second service where Steve emotionally shut down at exactly the wrong time, grinding everything to a halt. Brynn and Steve are both talented chefs whose futures may not be in the rapid-fire world of a busy metropolitan restaurant.

Trenton's arrogance finally bubbled to the surface and it was not a good look. I'm rooting for Megan at this point.

[mertensia]

Man, Steve was my pick to win but his shutting down was just a big no.

I get Kiya's bitterness - I never get picked for stuff, either - but this just looked bad.

I can see why Gordon values Christina; she knew how to calm Kiya down.

[nitrofishblue]

I sure hope Trenton does not win. He gives me the creeps for some reason.

[Ms Blue Jay]

8 hours ago, Such A Flirt said:

This is weird, we only got the first episode where I live; the second hour was The Bachelor or whatever.

Really bummed about Steve, I honestly thought he would win the whole thing. So I guess I'm rooting for Megan now.

Same, my PVR didn't tape the second,  I had to look for it later.

[preeya]

As much as I hate to say it, it looks like Trenton for the win.

[EllaWycliffe]

4 hours ago, Sir RaiderDuck OMS said:

Ramsay letting anyone keep their jackets is rare, and a major sign of respect from him.

Eh, I get it but I'd be more awed if he actually made a job offer.

 

3 hours ago, mertensia said:

I get Kiya's bitterness - I never get picked for stuff, either - but this just looked bad.

Yeah but thats sort of the "young" coming out. I think Trenton will win but I admit, I kinda want Kiya to defy the odds and be the winner here. 

[fishcakes]

I guess I'm rooting for Megan now too, but she's been almost invisible the last few weeks, so I don't know if she really has a chance. I kind of remember liking her at the beginning of the season, but she's faded into the background as bigger personalities have emerged. I think we're gearing up for a Trenton/Kiya showdown; she hates him and he's generally arrogant. For someone who couldn't figure out he was eating tuna even with Gordon repeatedly saying "T - U - N - A" at him, he could maybe be less impressed with himself. And then he explains it by saying he doesn't eat a lot of raw fish. Okay, well, but can he spell at all?

I still think Steve should have won, but if Gordon gives him a job, which he's done with a few people who didn't get to the finals, he might end up doing just as well. I kind of doubt that the winner of this season will be Gordon's actual protege; they'll probably just get training in one of his restaurants.

[seacliffsal]

I was surprised that Steven was let go ahead of some of the other contestants.  I wasn't surprised by Brynn's elimination (only that she lasted longer than Steven).  I am surprised by Kiya's bitterness towards Trenton.  I agree with an above poster that it shows her youth, but it seems like it's an extreme level of bitterness.  She may have felt "entitled" to be chosen for what ended up to be the shopping spree as she was in second place for the challenge, but I think it's totally fair to take who one wants to take in order to have an enjoyable time (Gordon sure tried to fire Kiya up with his comment that he would have chosen her).  I like Megan or Trenton for the win.

[AZChristian]

Megan looks like a strong contender, but 2/3 of the prior winners have been female, so I wonder whether TPTB might want to go for a male winner if it's a close call.

[mojoween]

The funniest part about Megan making it is that when her photo was shown when she was first to the finals, I legitimately had no idea who was in the picture.

[preeya]

7 hours ago, fishcakes said:

I kind of doubt that the winner of this season will be Gordon's actual protege; they'll probably just get training in one of his restaurants.

Most of them move on after the initial contract runs out. However, it looks good on a resume.

[xcrayon2215x]

I liked Steve but he admitted he couldn't be vocal so I understand him going. I think he should have stayed over Brynn though. I am not liking Trenton so much now but I think Kiya shouldn't have done those threats, I hope Megan can win. 

[eXiled]

Whoa, my original Final Two were axed back to back! I'm another viewer who doubted Ramsay would pick a chef who didn't burn off each and every calorie he/she ate. Nice to be shocked. I really liked Steve, though, and thought he would go much farther.

Trenton is a dick. Kiya is a great study, but she's still very green (never seen prawns or cooked certain things). Plus her bitterness was not a good look. Save that shit for the bathroom at 2 a.m. when you're by yourself, honey. Christina's right. This is a competition!

I'm rooting for Megan, a cheftestant I always forgot before the last few eps. That said, being a dick doesn't seem to stop many great chefs, lol. Therefore, I believe Trenton will win.

[SweetSin]

I was rooting for Steve to at least make F3 but shutting down is just never good and if you ever say to GR that "he can teach you" it's the nail in the coffin. It's something you never want to say when put up for elimination. When Steve said it I knew he was eliminated. 

I'm rooting for Megan to win it all even though she doesn't get much screen time and guess TPTB can't get any drama out of her. She's there to win and has been professional and did a great job at spotting the sabotages. 

Trenton & Kiya are just a little too immature w/Kiya breaking down like that and crying doubt she's going to win. GR isn't really a fan of breaking down and crying and can only imagine what it will be like if she worked in GR's restaurant and the pressure gets to be too much she may breakdown again. Trenton too arrogant and that tuna thing was a big WTF even when GR was spelling it out it was jut as bad as Jeremy in S11 who couldn't repeat the order when GR was repeating it to him right in his face.

I can't stand the whole I'm from (insert state here) I never seen it before. Just as bad as if you're Italian you should know how to cook Italian food from scratch, etc. 

[bluepiano]

On 9/6/2021 at 9:46 PM, Chicago Redshirt said:

Well, I will give it to HK for surprising me by getting rid of the two most photogenic contestants they had left back to back. I said at least a few times that it was most likely that one of them would win since they were in shape and fit the mold of a "winner."

That said, I would have booted Brynn over Steven and Kiya over Brynn, so what do I know?

Let's see if I can bounce back from my prognostication failures:

My prediction is that Megan wins it all.

I don't think Kiya has a chance. Too coarse and unsophisticated.

I was in agreement with your earlier posts about GR not picking a winner who didn't fit his desired image. So the boots of Brynn and Steven were surprising. I still can't see Kiya winning for the reason you state.

I laughed at Steven's backhanded compliment about how she's done well for someone from Barrelville. For a moment I thought "Barelville" was a made-up name for a hick town, like Podunk. Then I remembered she actually is from Barrelville. Though except for the woman chef from New York (Emily?) I think all the contestants are from small towns.

What exactly is a "protege" anyway? Unlike in previous seasons, we are not being told that the winner gets an actual job at a GR restaurant. Maybe GR is giving himself an out because of the youth and relative inexperience of the "young guns." 

[Lovecat]

On 9/7/2021 at 12:46 AM, Chicago Redshirt said:

Let's see if I can bounce back from my prognostication failures:

BOUNCE BACK!!!!!

Sorry, the game in our house is to shout Antonio's pet phrase "BOUNCE BACK" whenever one of the chefs says it.

I wonder if any of these kids have actually watched the show before...the sabotages are always the same, so if they studied up, they should have known what to look for.  It's like learning to swim and drive stick before going on The Amazing Race.

[Chicago Redshirt]

3 hours ago, bluepiano said:

What exactly is a "protege" anyway? Unlike in previous seasons, we are not being told that the winner gets an actual job at a GR restaurant. Maybe GR is giving himself an out because of the youth and relative inexperience of the "young guns." 

My head may be is mush, but I think they have said on the show that the winner does get to be the head chef at GR Steak at one of the LV casinos. 

I think they are emphasizing "protege" because there is probably less of an expectation that the person will be the ultimate authority at wherever it is. 

2 hours ago, Lovecat said:

BOUNCE BACK!!!!!

Sorry, the game in our house is to shout Antonio's pet phrase "BOUNCE BACK" whenever one of the chefs says it.

I wonder if any of these kids have actually watched the show before...the sabotages are always the same, so if they studied up, they should have known what to look for.  It's like learning to swim and drive stick before going on The Amazing Race.

To be fair, "bounce back" is probably something Gordon has been saying from S1, but it was striking how much more that poor Antonio was using that phrase.

I totally agree that the Christina/Jason sabotages should never get through. One would think that you'd watch the food that the sous-chefs produced like a hawk. Even if you were just teleported into HK and found yourself expediting without having watched a second of the show, just being able to hear them getting caught sabotaging someone else should make you suspicious of everything they put up. Because obviously the sabotages are deliberate things. No one is going to confuse orzo for risotto rice or peas and zucchini by accident. So even if someone had no idea, like there should be no way that they get caught by more than one sabotage.

I'm surprised that there aren't (more?) examples of people falsely accusing Christina/Jason of sabotaging stuff that was actually just fine the way it was. As well as that the producers/Ramsay don't enlist the other contestants to purposely tank things to see if they would be caught. 

[Yeah No]

Megan is getting the typical Hell's Kitchen winner's edit.  I have no doubt she will win.  The show hasn't aired anything negative about her at all.  No bad attitude, no weirdness, nothing.  We've all seen the kinks in Trenton and Kiya's armor so that's a big giveaway.  Both Trenton and Kiya have shown themselves to be immature, with a bad attitude or arrogant plus there was Kiya's meltdown and Trenton's weird tuna space-out.  The winner on this show is never ever featured in a bad light so by this time it's easy to figure out who they are.

I was hoping it would be Steve but suddenly it all became about his lack of voice and then he shoots himself in the foot by admitting it and saying he wants to learn.  Ugh, he was toast the moment he said that. 

 

[jabRI]

Steve was my favorite, and I think he'll do just fine.  I can understand not saying anything if you don't have anything to say, I think that's fine, but the downfall is not answering in the kitchen when someone asks you something.  That throws other people off their rhythm

[Such A Flirt]

Has Trenton always had such a potty mouth? Every other word gets bleeped out. I don't remember who said he was trying to turn into Gordon (Kiya?), but he is taking it way over the line.

And Brynn (I think?) was right when she said it was anger and not assertiveness on his part.

[MajorWoody]

I didn’t realize it was a double episode until I started to read this thread. We watch it on demand, so I was able to go back where I cut it off, and catch the 2nd half.

Anyways…

 

Steve started strong, and seemed very competent, but seemed to go downhill rapidly the last few weeks. Couple that with his lack of assertiveness, and it just proves he might be a good cook, but not a good leader in a busy kitchen. Not that anyone in this crew really is.

Kiya continues in the grand tradition of arrogant HK chefs who can’t even come close to backing up their boasts. Plus her Brynn-like meltdown doesn’t bode well for her.

Brynn should never have been allowed on this show. She is emotionally fragile, and I worry about her mental health after seeing her repeated breakdowns. If there is some sort of psychological screening done prior to be being chosen for failed miserably. Shame on GR and the production crew for exploiting her.

Megan? Who is she? Before this week I couldn’t tell you her name or who she was.

Trenton is also fading fast, at least mentally. 
 

Quite frankly, no one this season comes across as even remotely capable of leading a large and busy kitchen. But of course, as history has shown, the promised position is often a lie. 

[nitrofishblue]

5 hours ago, MajorWoody said:

 

Quite frankly, no one this season comes across as even remotely capable of leading a large and busy kitchen. But of course, as history has shown, the promised position is often a lie. 

Ok, who here can tell you what the grand prize is????

[bluepiano]

On 9/11/2021 at 12:42 AM, Such A Flirt said:

Has Trenton always had such a potty mouth? Every other word gets bleeped out. I don't remember who said he was trying to turn into Gordon (Kiya?), but he is taking it way over the line.

I had previously posted here about Kiya getting bleeped every other word. Steve wasn't that far behind, at least in his talking heads. I don't know if it's a generational thing or a chef thing. The contestants on Top Chef, many of them not that young, also curse a blue streak.

Of course it's a common thing in our society in general. From my old fart perspective, when every other word is an F bomb, it completely loses any impact. It also shows laziness and a lack of command of the English language.

Regarding the first challenge, I thought it was really silly to have people voting through social media. Since they couldn't taste the food, it was just a popularity contest.

Edited September 13, 2021 by bluepiano

[judyri]

12 hours ago, bluepiano said:

Since they couldn't taste the food, it was just a popularity contest.

I think the idea was to show if they could plate properly, since as they always say you 'first eat with your eyes'